Thaipusam ~ February 8, 2009

If you don't like needles puncturing the skin then you don't want to look at the pictures for this post; they are really intense. I struggled to even look at them for a couple days, but nonetheless I got through them.

First you need to know more about Thaipusam to really understand what is going on here. It is a Hindu festival celebrated by people native to the Tamil Nadu state of India. You might be more familiar with the state's largest city and capital, Chennai. But the largest celebrations of Thaipusam take place in Singapore, Mauritius and Malaysia.

The people you see carrying the large canopies of metal and colorful decorations, or the pots of milk are the devotees. The canopy they burden is a kavadi and it is often attached to the devotee's skin with hooks or is pierced by metal spears. In order to prepare for this celebration the devotees cleanse themselves through prayer and fasting. And the devotees bearing the kavadi practice celibacy and eat food that is healthy, nutritious and clean.

So why do they perform these celebrations? Usually, Hindus take a vow to offer a kavadi to beseech help from the God Murugan for avoiding a big tragedy. For example, if you were a devotee and your son had a terminal illness, then you would pray to surrender your son's life in exchange for a vow to dedicate a kavadi to Murugan.

The small spears through the tongue and cheek remind the devotees of Lord Murugan and it prevents them from speaking, which relinquishes the power of endurance. The more pain the devotee endures, the greater the benefit.

This celebration wasn't easy to photograph so I cannot imagine what it would be like to be a devotee and burden a kavadi. To all the devotees that take this vow each year: I respect you for your great strength, courage and faith.