Skip to content
Nithyanandapedia
Outdoor temple-style ritual under a open canopy tent. A large deity murti or ceremonial figure draped in purple cloth and garlands sits on a raised platform beneath a gold parasol-shaped umbrella. In front, rows of kalasha pots with mango leaves and flowers are arranged on a table. Seated men in green dhotis and green shawls sit on the ground around a fire pit in a homa or yagna setting. Standing men in orange-red and saffron dhotis, some bare-chested with rudraksha or gold necklaces, move about the platform. A second decorated palanquin or ratha with red and yellow drapes and flowers appears at right. Banana plants frame the scene.

More like this

Open the gallery
A photograph of an outdoor ritual pavilion with a sandy floor under a corrugated roof and banana leaves. Several men in green dhotis and shawls sit on the ground at left, some with shaved heads and sacred threads. Standing figures in yellow and orange dhotis, some bare-chested, attend decorated altars draped in red, yellow and green cloth. Flower garlands and brass plates of offerings sit on the platforms, with deity murti decorated with garlands and a kalasha-style arrangement in the centre. The scene suggests a temple-style puja in progress.2015-01-13A photograph of an outdoor ritual pavilion with a tin roof and a sandy floor. In the foreground, four elderly and middle-aged men sit in green cloths and green shawls, one holding a small object, while a younger man in a white shirt sits at the right edge. Behind them, decorated deity murtis stand under flower garlands, one in a purple-and-gold stand beneath a yellow canopy and others dressed in yellow, orange and green. A bare-chested priest and several other men in white or pale clothing stand near the back, and a woman in a pink sari sits at the right with offerings. Brass pots, fruit and flower offerings are arranged along the left side.2015-01-13A large open-air tent ceremony with a sandy floor, where many priests in green and yellow ceremonial clothing and orange-striped headwraps sit or stand around a rectangular homa fire pit lined with white and red rims and scattered marigold flowers. Several bare-chested men in pink and yellow dhotis tend offerings and vessels, and a figure in a saffron wrap stands at the back. Behind them stand decorated deity murti and a large ornate canopy with floral garlands and banana plants. Nobody in this scene is identifiable as a person by the cues the guidelines require, so no candidate is marked.2015-01-13January 12 20152015-01-12January 12 20152015-01-12Outdoor temple-style ritual under a open-sided pandal with a decorated deity murti on a flower-garlanded wooden ratha/palanquin at the left, a golden canopy above. Standing men, bare-chested with pink, yellow and maroon dhotis and sashes, face a seated group of men in green, pink and orange cloths with colourful turbans. A brass plate with a lit flame and offerings is held in front of seated priests, one with a shawl. a person's presence is not clearly identifiable in the image.2015-01-13Outdoor ceremony under a canopy with rows of seated men in green dhotis and shawls, many with white tilak and rudraksha malas, sitting on mats before a decorated shrine. A tall pink and gold ornate structure draped with yellow marigold garlands and banana leaves stands behind them, with a large kalasha-like decoration and standing deity murtis in yellow garlands at left. Microphones on stands sit at front. Among the seated men, one older man in an orange-gold shawl with white forehead marks sits at front left. Many more people stand and sit in the background. No clearly identifiable a person candidate is visible in the foreground group.2015-01-13A photograph of a Vedic fire ritual under a large white tented pavilion. In the foreground a bare-chested priest in orange-and-yellow dhoti with a rudraksha mala and tilak carries a brass plate with a lit flame. Around him stand several men in green dhotis and shawls, some bare-chested, watching. Behind a square fire pit lined with white and red painted tiles, a richly decorated ornamental structure garlanded with yellow flowers and a canopy stands with a deity murti at its centre. Brass lamps and offering vessels sit on an orange cloth near the pit, and a microphone stand is at left. A few figures in saffron and orange stand at the right. Several dozen men appear in the scene.2015-01-12Outdoor ritual under a corrugated roof and blue-and-yellow striped tent drapes, with banana plants and marigold garlands. Seated on mats on bare ground, a large group of men in green dhotis and shawls with saffron-red borders sits in rows facing a decorated shrine. A deity murti in a yellow-gold garment and garlands stands at left beside a garlanded palanquin-like altar. Foreground shows a fire pit with an open square hole, and devotees sit facing a kalasha-lined altar with brass vessels and offerings. A standing man in green at right watches the rite. Many men sit bare-chested with sacred ash markings.2015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13A large outdoor ritual hall under a white tent canopy during an Atirudra Mahayagya-style puja. Many seated men wear green shawls and white or saffron-toned clothing, several bare-chested priests among them, sitting in rows on the ground. Behind them stand richly decorated deity murtis and a tall gold-canopied peetha draped in purple cloth and heaped with yellow and orange marigold garlands. Flower-festooned umbrellas and palm fronds frame the altar, with small oil lamps glowing in front. A standing figure in white clothing is visible near the center-left. Several shaved-headed devotees sit in the foreground, some wearing marks on the forehead.2015-01-12