Celebration of Thaipoosam Cavadee in Mauritius. Photos of the procession in Triolet.
That’s the first thing I saw… People “watering” the roads!
There really is no end to human stupidity. Wasting drinkable water while the country is facing its most severe drought of all time.
It’s not as if arrangements haven’t been made… These lorries probably have had their water from Solitude lake.
Coming back to the festival, that was the crowd awaiting the arrival of the procession….
With our fearsome policemen controlling the traffic. In the background, coconuts were being broken as part of the offerings.
Why blame the common man when even the Fire Services were taking part…
The Lord Muruga chariot headed the procession, stopping every few metres to allow the devotees to offer their prayers.
The devotees carrying their Cavadee – from a simple pot of milk to multi-coloured wood/bamboo constructions.
Another water-carrying tank tractor…
All devotees are required at the minimum to spear their tongue & keep a vow of silence. The more the piercings, the more pain you endure & the greater you’ll reap.
Bed of nails. There’s also the much harder shoe of nails, which I didn’t notice this year.
The skin-pulled chariot. & our water-wasters, still in action when the road has already been watered countless times…
The lone man at the back as the procession moved on. Must have been tough for him…
Related:
- Yashvin - Watering roads during the worst drought
- Espace-temps au goût de fraise Tagada - Cavadee - fête tamoule, Il était une fois...., Au bord de la rivière - rituels pour célébrer Mourouga, Allumer une petite flamme..., Tika - la marque sur le front, Les allumettes humides..., Rites de purification, Cavadee, Faire don de sa douleur..., Les aiguilles, Prière silencieuse, La lance de Mourouga, La roue du paon..., Porteuse d'offrande, Voeu de silence, Marcher pieds nus c'est bon pour la santé..., La procession se met en place, Retour au kovil.
7 comments
Thank you for sharing.
Awesome post and superb photos! It feels great to see everyone celebrating and participating in this festival.
On the water issue.
But would God be happier to see people saving water instead of wasting it just to please him? Reminds me of this story, http://content.msn.co.in/MSNContribute/Story.aspx?PageID=1cc563ed-8247-42c2-a272-b14177218753.
I hope that the whole of Mauritius didn't do the same thing. Otherwise, the level of water would have gone again really low.
Funny, I said the same thing to myself when I saw the bowser spilling water on the road today. Didn't the "authorities" warn that people would be fined if seen wasting water? All this was being done in front of... the "Police Force", as it is sometimes called. They didn't seem to bother at all.
But "our fearsome policemen" can look very very fat. It would be hard for those to run after any thief or offender.
I had never seen the "bed-of-nails" thing before, which must be much rarer than the "savat koulou". And the guy pulling his little toy behind him is just great!
But, er, what about traffic through Triolet?
nice photos.. thanks for sharing.
@Cags @Yudz
Thanks for your comments.
@Yadhav
The biggest religion in the world is humanity. When will people learn this?
@Siganus
As pointed out by Yashvin in his post, there's a loophole in the law.
No person shall without reasonable excuse, use any domestic supply or non domestic supply through a hosepipe, sprinkler or any similar apparatus, or in any wasteful manner
(a) To wash any vehicle
(b) To wash any pavement, building or part of any building
(c) To water any hedge or lawn
No mention of roads.
For the Triolet traffic, most of the vehicles were being diverted through the side streets. A by-pass road would have been very useful here...
Great photos it makes a nice visual report, good job.
nice pics
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