Murugan
Tamil Hindus in South India celebrate their god Murugan, the patron deity of the state Tamil Nadu. The men wear colorful clothes and flower necklaces, some show their devotion by piercing lemon fruits on needles and hooks through their skin. The devotional work of the Tamils, Thiruppugazh, characterizes Murugan or Kartikeya, as he is also known, as a benign deity: “Murugan never hesitates to help a devotee when called upon in piety or distress.” The pictures of our series were taken during Thiruvila, the chariot festival, which is one of the most sacred feasts of Hinduism.