Comments on: Fun, Frolic and Heavy Lifting

By: Tiadgh

Tiadgh — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:17:41 +0000

let me educate you people… there is no pain felt… it is sheer devotion and yes it may look painful as all piercings would but its not. the piercings dont even leave scars on the devotees bodies.

By: Pearl from penang Malaysia

Pearl from penang Malaysia — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:35:08 +0000

I happened to browse and saw your site. Greeting from Penang Malaysia.

I like to share some of this year’s Indian Thaipusam in January 2007 http://www.my-island-penang.com/Thaipusam-Penang.html

And also I am sharing our recent Nine Emperors Gods Taoist Festival in Penang. It is more scary then Thaipusam. But since it is our culture, I am also learning about it. Cheers! http://www.my-island-penang.com/nine-emperor-gods.html

Pearl Oct 2007

By: Kaps

Kaps — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 14:00:34 +0000

Thaipoosam is not banned in India. It is celebrated grandly in Palani (in Tamilnadu). The Indian government has banned all acts of piercing and hence people can only take kavadis and paal kudams (milk pots). The same water tents exists in India too.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 01:57:14 +0000

Please see an article on Thaipusam on my website http://members.tripod.com/~jennifer_polan/submissions/thaipusam.html Is it really banned in India? Since when? WHen I was in Tamil Nadu in 2001 I saw people on the street celebrating this…

By: epoch

epoch — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 00:09:33 +0000

Thai Pusam - the most important festival for the Indian community in Malaysia.

Its a tamil festival (i.e. not just indians in malaysia), but it is officially banned in India.

By: dhaavak

dhaavak — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 05:17:23 +0000

Add in Opus Dei and their self-flagellation too

i went to a school run by opus dei and several teachers had embraced the order. one of my classmates from then has done the same… yes … i know abotu brown’s novel … but to the best of my knowledge none of my acquaintances did the self-flagellation.. yes corporal mortification is practiced… but i would put that in the same category as the periods of Lent, Ramadan or karvachauth.

By: Karthik

Karthik — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 04:16:59 +0000

I think the difference between this and say, Opus Dei is that here the people who do these (apparently) painful things to themselves claim that they feel no pain. I don’t know about “ecstatic religious trances,” but I do know that many of them were delirious, and there was a frenzy to their dance movements that scared me a little bit. A friend offered to take us to the place where the piercing is done – after seeing the celebrations, I am very glad I didn’t go.

By: Xfile

Xfile — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 01:02:09 +0000

and you have a troika of religious self-pain infliction. Something I just don't get

The outsider is likely to dismiss these type of practises as "self-pain infliction for the sake of religion", to prove your loyalty or something. But in fact its quite the opposite. Many people who do this regularly (especially the 'Kaavadi' shown here), experience ecstatic religious trances which last for hours and sometimes days. They later recall intense pleasure and visions of God, etc, and consider the initial pain involved as mere incovenience.

By: Ennis

Ennis — Sun, 12 Feb 2006 23:29:01 +0000

So Thai Pusam is at the same time as muharram? This is just the time of year for intense brown pain, huh? Add in Opus Dei and their self-flagellation too, and you have a troika of religious self-pain infliction. Something I just don’t get …

By: Manish Vij

Manish Vij — Sun, 12 Feb 2006 23:05:17 +0000

Great photos. The guy in photo 5 is such a baller.