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A photograph of a homa fire ceremony on a red floor inside a decorated hall with red and saffron banners and a crowd behind metal barriers. A square fire pit lined with yellow and pink-tiled bricks burns brightly at centre. Several priests sit around it: a bare-chested man in a yellow dhoti at left pours from a bowl, a man in orange cloth at right feeds sticks into the fire, and others in orange and white sit close by. Gold-framed ritual stands, kalashas, brass bowls, garlands, a small deity murti with a white bull figure and a book on the floor complete the scene.

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May 15 20162016-05-15A photograph inside a decorated temple hall during a fire ritual. At centre a brick-lined fire pit blazes with flames, surrounded by scattered grains. Several shirtless priests in orange and yellow dhotis sit on red mats: one on the left in a yellow cloth, one at right reading from an open book with a brass plate before him. Ornate brass oil lamps and a brass kalasha-style vessel frame the foreground, with a colourful floor rangoli mandala at lower left. Behind a metal barrier stands a crowd of devotees, and gilded deity murtis and framed portraits fill the altar area under hanging red, blue and orange garlands. No one in the crowd is clearly identifiable as a distinct candidate; the ritual participants are priests.2016-05-15May 15 20162016-05-15A temple hall with a sacred fire pit (homa) at centre, bright orange flames rising from a brick-lined rectangular fire pit scattered with grains and flower offerings. Several priests sit on the red-floored ground around it: a bare-chested man in orange dhoti at right reads from an open book, another bare-chested man in orange cloth sits at left, and a man in yellow dhoti kneels at lower left. Large brass oil lamps with multiple wicks and ornate brass vessels, kalasha pots and a mandala drawn in coloured powder frame the foreground. Behind, a crowd of devotees stands at a metal barrier before an elaborate gilded shrine with deity murtis and garlands; coloured tassels hang from the ceiling. Roughly several dozen people are visible.2016-05-15A homa fire ritual in a large, decorated hall with red floor and gold-painted arches and decorations. A sacred fire burns in a brick fire pit ringed with yellow-and-pink decorated bricks and white rice. Three men perform the ritual: a seated man in a yellow dhoti at left holds a plate of white rice, a bare-chested priest in the centre wears a red cloth and red beaded mala and holds a microphone, and a young man at right in a white dhoti with red border holds a microphone and sits beside a bowl of oranges. A standing man in red cloth stands behind at upper left. Brass pots, bowls and offerings surround them, and a white horse figure stands at right. Spectators fill the background behind metal barricades.2016-05-15A homa fire burns in a square brick fire pit decorated with pink dots and dusted with white powder, flames rising at the centre. Behind it a bare-chested priest with a long beard, a red-beaded rudraksha mala and a red sacred cloth sits with a bowl and ladle, performing the offering. To the left, a man in a yellow dhoti sits cross-legged, and at right a man holds a microphone while seated with a plate of fruit and small brass lamps. Golden trident-topped staffs and gold-framed arches stand around the platform, with red flags and banners overhead. Several people watch from the background behind barricades.2016-05-15A photograph of a homa fire pit built from yellow-orange bricks with white-dusted edges and pink flower decorations, a large flame rising from the center. Three men sit on a red cloth before it. On the left, a bare-chested man in a yellow dhoti pours or tends the fire. In the center, a bald, bare-chested man wearing a red rudraksha mala raises a hand over the fire. On the right, a young man in a white dhoti with a gold chain speaks into a microphone. Fruit, brass bowls and a green basin sit nearby. Behind them, golden trident-topped stands, red flags and a white decorated bull are visible, with a crowd standing behind barricades under a tent.2016-05-15May 15 20162016-05-15May 15 20162016-05-15September 14 20152015-09-14Photo 11728701 +2 copiesMay 15 20162016-05-15