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A photograph of a homa fire ritual at night in an open courtyard. A square fire pit with a bright flame sits in the centre, bordered with white and red flower petals. Several men in white dhotis and white upper cloths, many wearing gold-coloured necklaces, sit around the pit. A bald man in the centre-right pours offerings into the fire while a man in white beside him tends the blaze. At the right, a seated priest in white with a red and gold garland and a brass oil lamp is near the fire. Two bare-shouldered men in the foreground face the fire from behind. Smoke and motion blur fill the frame; pillars with orange and white cloth hang in the background.

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Night photograph of a homa fire ritual at an ashram courtyard. A square brick fire pit glows orange, with smoke rising from it. Around it sit many men in white dhotis and shawls with bare upper bodies, wearing gold-and-bead malas. In the foreground a bald priest in white holds a ladle or pours offerings near the fire, while another seated priest nearby holds a plate. On the right, brass oil lamps with lit flames stand beside red and white flower garlands and a plate of offerings, and an open book rests on the cloth. Trays of food, flower petals and banana leaves lie on the ground. Red and purple striped ceremonial banners hang on poles in the background, with more people seated in the dim distance.2010-10-16 +1 copiesA night-time homa ritual in an open outdoor courtyard under a strip of green leaf-and-flower decoration. A square fire pit glows at centre, with flames rising from it. Several men in white dhotis and white upper cloths, with gold or beaded garlands, sit cross-legged around the pit and feed offerings into it from brass vessels and bowls. A bald priest in the middle, wearing white and garlands, sits on a raised carved wooden seat. On the right, a shrine-like altar holds brass oil lamps with flames, red flower garlands, fruit, and a decorated deity murti draped in green fabric. Behind the group, more people in white sit on mats, and a figure in white walks past. Coloured cloth panels hang on poles at the back.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16A night homa in progress at a ceremonial fire pit. A tall flame rises from a square stone fire pit with flower petals scattered on its edges. A standing priest in white dhoti and shawl holds a long stalk above the fire. Seated around the pit, several men in white ritual clothes and gold beaded necklaces sit cross-legged; one at right has palms pressed together in prayer. Brass bowls and plates of offerings sit at the front, and a table at right holds fruit, marigold garlands, brass oil lamps and a small deity murti decorated with red flowers. Strings of lights and a pink-painted figure appear in the background.2010-10-16 +1 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copiesA photograph of a homa ritual at night around a square fire pit of brick-like lining with a lit flame inside. Several shaven-headed priests sit cross-legged in white dhotis and white upper cloths with red borders, wearing gold necklaces. The priest in the foreground at left holds a large ladle over the fire, while others around the pit tend offering bowls of ghee, grains and flowers. Brass oil lamps, garlands of marigold and white flowers, and plates of offerings are arranged in front. Behind them a large ornate red and gold chair holds a framed portrait of a woman in orange robes with a garland; the portrait is a printed picture, not a live person.2010-10-16 +1 copiesA night-time homa ceremony in an open courtyard. A square brick fire pit with a lit flame sits in the centre, surrounded by flower petals. Around it sit several bare-chested priests in white dhotis and gold-bead garlands, one holding a ladle and offerings. On the right, a bald priest in white with a gold necklace tends brass oil lamps and a plate of offerings near a red-draped seat. Bowls of grains, fruit and dried items lie in front. Two standing figures and seated men are visible in the background. The scene shows a fire ritual with lamps, offerings and a tended fire pit.2010-10-16 +2 copiesA night-time fire ritual, a homa, at an outdoor square-brick fire pit lined in gold-painted border. A large flame rises from the pit. Four priests in white dhotis with rudraksha malas and white tilak marks sit on the ground, and one in saffron/orange robes with a rudraksha mala holds a ladle at the pit edge; a young assistant in a white dhoti with a red-pink headcloth pours from a copper vessel. Brass pots, steel bowls of grains and yellow flowers surround the fire. Seated devotees in white and red shawls watch from plastic chairs behind, around 20 visible.2014-10-11Night-time homa or yagna at an open-air outdoor setting strung with leafy garlands and colourful cloth banners. Several men in plain white dhoti-style cloth with rudraksha-style beaded necklaces sit on mats around a raised fire pit, and one man in the foreground holds a ladle over the pit while another pours from a vessel. Brass oil lamp, brass bowls and a brass kalasha-like vessel stand near a seated figure draped in a green and gold silk cloth with yellow and orange marigold garlands. A man with shaved head and plain white cloth and a wooden-armed seat is at the right. Smoke rises in the lamplight.2010-10-15October 11 20142014-10-11Night-time homa at an outdoor ashram site: a square stone fire pit glows with flames at the centre while several bald priests in white dhotis and unstitched white shawls sit around it. Several men wear gold necklaces and rudraksha-style beads; some are feeding offerings into the fire by hand, while another holds a metal bowl of chopped vegetables and another passes a tray of yellow flower garlands. Brass lamps, kalasha pots, fruit, marigold and red flower garlands are arranged on a cloth beside them, and a deity murti stands draped in green and red fabric and garlands on the right. Marigold petals are scattered on the stone.2010-10-16 +2 copiesOctober 16 20102010-10-16 +1 copies