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Night outdoor ritual photograph at an ashram courtyard lit with strings of coloured lights and hung with orange and red bunting. A shaved-headed priest in white dhoti and shawl, with a gold necklace, stands at right holding a lit aarti lamp that sends up smoke, facing a seated priest in white clothes who is also shaded by a white cloth on a low altar table. The altar holds brass bowls, a kalasha-like vessel, flowers, fruit and oil lamps, and a carved wooden peetha-style panel stands beside it. Seated devotees in red and orange saris and white clothes fill the left foreground with hands joined in prayer, including a small girl, and more worshippers stand behind. A decorated pillar with green leaves and a painted palanquin-like frame rises in the centre.

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October 16 20102010-10-16A night ritual in a covered open hall decorated with red, yellow and green hangings and leafy garland strings. A standing priest in white dhoti and shawl with a red border and gold-coloured trim holds a flaming lamp and a small brass vessel in front of a seated group of white-clad priests on a low platform. Several seated devotees in white, a bare-headed man in a white garment, and a shaved-headed priest in white and gold chains sit in the foreground. On the left a red and gold throne-style seat holds a framed portrait of a figure in saffron robes, and a brass oil lamp stands on the floor. Brass plates and bowls rest around the platform, and a row of people in saffron and white sits in the background. The scene is a fire or lamp offering ritual, consistent with an aarti or homa setting.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 15 20102010-10-15Night ritual under a open-sided pavilion decorated with orange triangular pennants, hanging tassels and green leaf garlands. A standing priest with a shaved head, wearing white dhoti and shawl with a saffron-and-red border and a gold-coloured necklace, holds a lit flame over a fire pit or homa offering while a brass lamp and ritual vessels rest on the platform. Seated priests in white clothes, one in a green silk wrap, perform the rite. Devotees sit on the ground at the sides, and a red throne cushion holds a framed portrait of a woman in orange garments. Stone deity murtis and a tall decorated pillar appear in the background.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesNight outdoor ritual under a open-sided canopy decorated with green leaf garlands, orange pennants and hanging colourful tassels. At the centre a square fire pit blazes beside a large round clay vessel, with a priest in white dhoti and turban raising a flaming lamp. Beside him stand several priests in white dhotis and shawls with palms joined, and a figure kneels at the front of the pit. Seated devotees in orange and white clothes fill the left foreground. On the right, a decorated table holds fruit, sweets and brass lamps before a large ganesha murti with a lit lighting frame behind it.2010-10-16 +1 copiesNight ritual in an open-sided pavilion with a corrugated metal roof, lit by a bright overhead lamp. A standing priest in white dhoti and shawl with a beaded necklace holds up a lit flame in a lamp and smoke rises from it. Seated participants in white clothes sit on the floor around a raised platform with a small fire area, brass oil lamps, bowls of offerings, a bell and a kalasha-type vessel. Behind them a red and gold throne holds a framed portrait of a seated figure, with a bald-headed seated man in orange-ornamented dress beside it. Hanging colourful tassel decorations, orange triangular pennants and green leaf garlands decorate the ceiling, and a decorated deity murti stands at the back right on a tiered base. Several seated people in white and a few in red saris are visible in the crowd.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesNight outdoor ritual at an ashram with strings of coloured fairy lights on a wall behind. A bald priest in white dhoti and shawl with a beaded mala stands centre, holding a flaming aarti lamp toward a row of tall burning sticks. Seated priests in white flank him; one at right holds hands folded in prayer and wears a garland, another at left holds a metal vessel. Brass bowls, fruit, red flower garlands and lit oil lamps are arranged on the floor. A deity murti with a green-and-gold garment appears at right.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 05 20112011-10-05Night outdoor ritual under a canopy strung with leaf garlands and hanging cloth tassels. In the centre, a white-robed priest stands holding a lit lamp while a seated man with bare shoulders and gold necklaces sits at a white stepped platform holding a rounded tray. A large black slab sits on the platform, covered with scattered flower petals. Smoke rises through the air. Brass oil lamps stand on a red and green cloth, with fruit and sweets nearby. To the right, a large decorated Ganesha murti with red lights strung behind it. Seated children in white and devotees in white clothes fill the background, with a seated crowd watching.2010-10-16