Tag: rituals

Prakash J Govindarajoo family piercing him as a preparation for Thaipusam Festival 2019, his tongue and cheeks are pierced with spike, photo by Ivan Kralj

Thaipusam Festival : Body Piercing Rituals Under the Blood Moon

Thaipusam Festival in Batu Caves is not for everyone. If you visit it, be prepared to experience some extreme body piercing rituals!

Photograph of a girl carrying a Paal Kudam, a pot of milk, spilling over her forehead, while her mother supports her at Thaipusam pilgrimage. At the background of the photo, a young guy is resting on chair while carrying a Kavadi, a heavy portable altar with skewers attached to his torso, photo by Ivan Kralj

Thaipusam’s extreme devotion : Piercing yourself for religion

It is an old belief that the full moon makes people go crazy (therefore, the word ‘lunatics’ contains ‘luna,’ the Latin word for the moon)! Even if no transformational effect of the full moon on humans was ever…