Thaipusam

We already have an update! Those of you who have been in on the planning of this trip know that we really wanted to experience Thaipusam. As it turned out no one knew the actual date, and when we heard it may be the 5th, we thought we'd have to get to Malaysia to see it...as it turns out Hindus in Singapore celebrate it as well.

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So, we are about to experience one of the most dramatic and vibrant Indian festivals on the Hindu calendar. Some of you have seen it on National Geographic...it is a day of consecration, penance and atonement for Hindus. The festival has its origins in a Hindu epic (way too long to recount here), but basically Thaipusam commemorates a devotee of a lord, a festival where Hindus carry kavadis in fulfilment of vows, hoping to have wishes granted.

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Leading up to the event they prepare themselves by being strict vegetarians, as well as fasting, praying and adhering to austerities for a month. Hindus believe that refraining from forms of worldly activities will discipline the body and soul, and tune their minds to spirituality and liberation from worldy desires.

On the eve of Thaipusam, we will see a huge parade with a statue of this lord carried on a silver chariot from temple to temple. Thousands of Hindus will gather in the early hours of the morning, chanting with joy. Inside the temples, devotees will make offerings to this lord, and get ready for the respective penance rituals. These range from shaving their heads, to carrying milk pots, simple wooden kavadis, or more elaborate alogu kavadis. Then the devotees embark on the trek from temple to temple.

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Here's where it becomes very foreign to us..."kavadi" means "sacrifice at every step." Kavadis vary in shapes and sizes. Simple wooden kavadis are arches strung across frames and decorated with flowers and pictures of deities and pots of milk that are carried over the shoulders of these devotees. More elaborate ones consist of dozens of thin metal skewers mnounted on metal frames, bedecked with flowers, tinsel, peacock feathers and pictures of deities. And here it is: they also have skewers that anchor and pierce various parts of the devotees' bodies, including chests, arms, foreheads, cheeks, and tongues!

We have also seen on TV (and expect to see for real tomorrow night)devotees with dozens of limes hooked to their chests and devotees with various weights hanging from the piercings, and devotees who make the trek using wooden sandals with 100 nails sticking up and out of the base.

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Throughout the parade, devotees are cheered on by supporters chanting and singing prayers. The whole thing seems like a feat in itself, but what seems to be so awe-inspiring is that the devotees apparently transcend pain and show no sign of bleeding or scarring subsequently. It is believed that their faith, devotion and religious fervour help them to withstand all of these incredible piercings with no ill effects. On reaching their final destination, the devotees offer the pots of milk to this lord, and with the help of family and friends the weights and piercings (kavadis) are removed.

Here's hoping that we can get lots of photos tomorrow night!

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