On 2nd January, I enrolled for Thaipusam Educational Tour, a festival for the Brave! Darling Keane had seen the pictures and was keen to go. So well, I agreed! I enjoyed going on such heritage tour! It's great that Keane wanted to go too!
Before today arrived, I had prepared darling Keane about what he will see over there; kavadi, the piercing etc. I also explained what Thaipusam is all about, its origin etc. Yes, he might not fully understand what I said, but it's to let him know that they are not doing anything suicidal or dangerous, and that they will not pierce us!
A brief summary...
Thaipusam is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by the Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (Jan/Feb). Thaipusam actually celebrates the birthday of the Hindu deity Subramaniam, the youngest son of god Shiva and his wife Parvati. On this occasion, Hindus show the sincerity of their faith . It is a time where the devotees pray for divine help and make vows. When their prayers are answered, they fulfil their vows.
To do this, a devotee would pierce his cheeks, tongue, face or other suitable body parts with sharp objects. Next his friends or relatives load a kavadi on his shoulder. Finally, in a trance-like manner, he goes on a 4 km journey of faith.
First stop, had lunch at a Tamil restaurant!
Yummy.
See the exhibition set up by M1.
We are inside the temple now!
Darling Keane looked in awe.
*Ouch!*
Close-up.
Darling Keane, "Don't take my picture!"
This good-looking young lad attracted alot of crowds.
Yes, we were one of them!
He even smiled at the crowd he attracted.
Easy does it!
Endure!
This man was done with piercing and kavadi!
Front view.
Loud and nice music were played inside the temple.
And dancing.
Offerings.
Off to take pictures of the artchitural building!
Darling Keane spotted the elephants.
So ok, let';s take a picture.
Notice he's not wearing shoes;
shoes have to be removed inside the premises.
We took a short break at City Square Mall,
the first Eco Mall in Singapore.
Darling Keane was up on daddy's shoulder again to see the parade!
He even smiled at the crowd he attracted.
Easy does it!
Loud and nice music were played inside the temple.
Off to take pictures of the artchitural building!
We took a short break at City Square Mall,
Eh, a Chinese devotee!
Look how happy Darling Keane was!