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Outdoor temple courtyard during a ritual performance. On the left, a large circular metal gong hangs beside a stone pillar decorated with silver tinsel. At center, a row of women in white saris sits cross-legged behind a long table laid with brass pots, lamps and ritual vessels. Behind them, four or five men in saffron-orange dhotis and shawls stand playing long brass horns and wind instruments in front of a shaded pavilion strung with orange and red garlands. A man in white dhoti and shirt stands at right beside a white-and-red painted doorway with a hanging brass bell. A red cloth hangs from a pole at left. Several spectators sit in the background.

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December 24 20082008-12-24A photograph of a temple courtyard during a ritual event. Several men in saffron-orange robes stand behind a long metal table lit by brass oil lamps, lifting lamps in a ceremonial arati. Seated in front on a mat, women and girls in white clothes play brass bells and handheld instruments in rows. A large polished silver shield-like plate leans on the left near a stone pillar draped with silver tinsel and flower garlands. A red curtain hangs at the left. A man in white with an orange shawl stands at the right edge. A red-and-white painted wall and a tiled roof frame the scene. Streamers and a hanging decoration are visible above.2008-12-24December 24 20082008-12-24December 24 20082008-12-24A covered outdoor hall with a white-washed wall and corrugated roof hosts a ritual performance. Four men stand behind a long black-topped table in orange saffron dhotis and orange shawls with gold beaded necklaces, holding small brass handbells, while a fifth man in white with an orange shawl stands at the far left. Before them a row of women and girls in white saris with gold borders sit on a mat playing small hand cymbals and wooden sticks, with many brass oil lamps and kalasha-style brass vessels set on the floor. A few onlookers in white stand behind. A hanging mobile of colourful toys decorates the upper right and a small framed picture hangs on the wall. Watermarked archive photo in the Brahmotsavam setting.2008-12-24A ritual performance in a covered open-sided hall with a corrugated metal roof, red and white striped pillars and a pink curtain at the left edge. Five standing men in saffron-orange shawls and white dhotis hold brass ritual implements, some with lamps and bells, behind a long metal table. Strings of marigold garlands and bunches of cloth hang from the ceiling, and a framed picture and hanging banners decorate the back wall. Seated women in white saris and orange-trimmed clothing play cymbals and hand bells, with brass oil lamps and a lit kalasha-style lamp set on the floor before them. Rows of seated devotees fill the background, and a standing man in white clothing at the right holds a ritual object. The scene looks like a puja or aarti during a festival.2008-12-24A courtyard ritual with a row of brass oil lamps and small brass lamp stands arranged on a mat on the ground in front of a long table. Seven women in white saris sit cross-legged beside the lamps, several holding brass items or lamps. Behind them, four men in saffron/orange robes with rudraksha-style beaded necklaces stand holding lit oil lamps, and a man in white with an orange shawl stands at the right holding a brass bell. Small crowd of onlookers stands in the background beneath a corrugated roof, with colourful hanging decorations and a framed picture on the white wall.2008-12-24December 24 20082008-12-24A courtyard ritual with a row of people seated on striped mats before brass lamps, bells and platters of flowers, fruit, rice and wood offerings. A figure in a saffron-orange robe with a shawl sits with head bowed at a low wooden seat in the foreground. Behind, several men in saffron robes and marigold garlands stand and hold lit oil lamps along a metal-topped counter, while women in white saris and white blouses sit at the brass items. A white-robed man stands in the rear.2008-12-26Outdoor ritual scene under a corrugated metal roof at an ashram. Seven women sit cross-legged in a row on a mat, wearing white saris with coloured borders, each tending a long line of brass oil lamps (deepas) laid along the floor, with a large brass bell-like vessel near them. Behind them, men in orange saffron robes and white dhotis hold up lit multi-tiered brass aarti lamps and lamp stands with flames, standing along a metal-railed platform. Devotees sit in the background. Coloured paper decorations and a hanging mobile of small figurines are visible at the upper right, and a painted white wall with a small blue sign is at the left. The scene suggests a lamp-lighting aarti or deepa puja.2008-12-24A photograph of a ritual musical performance under a corrugated roof in a whitewashed courtyard. Seven women sit cross-legged on a long mat in white saris, playing hand bells and brass lamps arranged in rows, with several multi-tiered brass lamps set among them. Behind a raised metal counter, four men stand in saffron-orange robes with saffron shawls and beaded necklaces, one in a white dhoti with an orange shawl, holding cymbals, bells and hand drums aloft. Seated spectators are visible in the background. A small brass kalasha-style lamp hangs from a mobile of coloured ornaments at upper right.2008-12-24A covered outdoor hall decorated with green mango-leaf garlands and colourful paper lanterns hangs overhead. Several men in saffron-orange dhotis and shawls, some with rudraksha malas, stand at the back holding lit oil lamps (aarti) toward a line of seated people. Women in white saris sit on mats at a long table covered with brass oil lamps, flower garlands, banana leaves, fruits, coconuts and small plates of offerings. A saffron-robed figure bends forward in the foreground near the offerings. Devotees in white and orange sit along the right side. No clearly identifiable face is used here; the figure in the centre is shown bent over with his back to the camera, so no presence is confirmed. a person appearance is uncertain.2008-12-26