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Close view of a wooden pole lying across sandy ground, its middle section coated in terracotta-red clay and its ends bare pale wood. A bare foot rests on the red-coated section. Above, a person in white dhoti with a yellow border stands with a rudraksha-style beaded mala and small colourful tags hanging from it, holding a green bucket at the top right. Only the lower body and hands are visible, and the face is not shown.

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Outdoors on bare dirt, four men perform a ground ritual around a tall white-and-red striped wooden pole set into a decorated base of coloured powder rangoli with scattered pink flower petals. On the left, a man in white dhoti and shawl with a rudraksha mala crouches and digs with a long stick. Next to him, a seated man in orange with a rudraksha mala tends the base. A third man in orange kneels beside the pole. On the right, a man with long swept-back dark hair, bare-chested except for a maroon garment, with a dark shawl draped over his shoulder, grips the pole with both hands. Yellow brick pavers line the foreground, and bamboo and greenery fill the background.2016-10-06Outdoor ritual at a dirt-ground ashram site where a tall red-and-white wooden pole is being planted into the earth. A man in a long, dark-red robe with long, dreadlocked hair stands at right, holding the pole upright with both hands. Beside him, a man in a white dhoti with gold borders bends forward, pressing a long iron rod into the ground at the pole's base. Two men in orange robes with rudraksha malas kneel and crouch nearby, and a bald man in an orange cloth and beaded necklaces watches at far left. The base is decorated with a colourful rangoli of red, yellow and green powder and scattered pink flower petals, edged with yellow bricks. Bamboo and green shrubs stand behind, with a building and clear sky in the background.2016-10-06Close view of hands on red earth performing a fire-making gesture: one child in orange clothing holds a wooden stick with a fibrous wrapped tip and another wooden stick, while a person in a white dhoti with red borders stands behind, with bare feet visible on the dusty ground. Small stones and dry grass lie on the soil.2008-04-05Outdoor ritual at a dry earthen ground beside a tall red-and-white painted wooden pole being set upright. A man with long swept-back dark hair and bare chest, wearing a long maroon-red cloth and a rudraksha mala, stands at right with both hands on the pole. Another man in a white dhoti with a gold border kneels and works at the base, while a seated man in orange-saffron cloth with a rudraksha mala sits at the foot. Two other men in saffron clothing stand behind. Pink and yellow flower petals and a coloured rangoli design lie around the base, edged with yellow-brown bricks, with a woven basket nearby. Green trees and a building stand behind.2016-10-06Close photograph of bare feet on reddish-brown earth. Two people in white dhotis with coloured borders stand or sit on the ground: one dhoti has a purple-blue border, the other has red stripes. A hand in an orange garment holds a wooden stick or tool, possibly for measuring or marking the soil. Dry leaves and small stones lie on the ground.2008-04-05October 15 20122012-10-15October 01 20172017-10-01July 14 20132013-07-14July 14 20132013-07-14A photograph of an outdoor ritual at an ashram site where a long white-and-red pole is being set into the ground. A man in a dark red-brown robe with long dark hair and a beard stands at right, both hands on the pole. Beside him, a man in a white dhoti and white top with rudraksha beads and a garland stands behind the pole. Three men in saffron-orange robes with rudraksha malas kneel at the base, one packing soil with his hands, another working near the hole. Coloured rangoli powder in red, yellow, green and white and scattered pink flower petals surround the base, with yellow bricks along the edge. Bamboo, shrubs and a few clay pots frame the scene, with other white-clad people visible in the background.2016-10-06Close photograph of a seated person in orange clothing handing a tool to someone standing nearby in a white dhoti with red border stripes. The seated person's bare forearm extends from the lower right, holding a carved wooden stick with an ornate metal-banded handle and a flat wooden blade with a black cord wrap. Bare feet of another person are visible at the upper left on reddish-brown earth with small pebbles. The exchanged object suggests ritual preparation at an outdoor site.2008-04-05A photograph of a Pandakaal-style ritual at an outdoor temple setting. A green bamboo pole stands upright in the centre, held by a bare-chested priest in orange dhoti and an orange-and-red bordered cloth, with a black rudraksha-style mala around his neck. Beside him, a man in an orange turban and orange-and-gold shawl with a heavy gold necklace stands with palms pressed together in namaste, smiling; he has long hair and ornate gold jewellery. A man in a red cloth kneels at the base of the pole, and a woman in white and green-bordered sari holds a brass pot. Onlookers in white and orange surround the scene.2006-09-24