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Night outdoor ritual at a homa fire pit built of brick and decorated with marigold petals, banana leaves and small oil lamps in front of a pink-draped canopy. Two shaved-headed priests in saffron-orange robes stand at the left, one pouring liquid from a copper vessel over the fire area while a third priest in white dhoti and gold necklace kneels at the pit. A large crowd of devotees in white dhotis and kurtas stands with palms pressed together in anjali, with strings of lights overhead and a camera on a tripod recording the scene.

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Night outdoor homa at Tiruvannamalai under string lights. A shaved-headed priest in saffron-orange robes with a gold-bordered cloth stands at the brick fire pit, holding a steel plate with a red cloth and offerings. Another saffron-robed priest stands beside him, and a bare-chested man with white sacred markings and a beaded necklace kneels in front, hands folded. Banana leaves and a brick fire altar with flames sit in the foreground. A large crowd of white-clad devotees, many with palms joined, fills the background, and a cameraman on a tripod films the ritual.2011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10 +1 copiesNight outdoor homa at a large open-air gathering. Two monks in saffron-orange robes stand at a fire pit built of brick and marigold-decorated bricks, one holding a metal plate of offerings toward the flames. A seated man in white dhoti with a sacred thread and beaded necklace kneels at the left with folded hands. Behind them a large crowd of mostly white-clad devotees stands with palms pressed together, with string lights overhead and a camera on a tripod recording the scene. Banana leaves, a bowl of liquid, lit lamps and marigold garlands sit around the fire.2011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10Night ritual homa at an open-air outdoor setting. Two shaven-headed priests in saffron-orange dhotis and shawls stand at a fire pit; the front priest holds a bell and a metal vessel with a large flame aloft, wearing a rudraksha-style mala and gold-toned arm bands. The fire pit is built of brick-like blocks decorated with marigold petals and banana leaves, with brass bowls of offerings and a kalasha-like vessel in front. Behind them a large seated crowd, mostly in white, presses palms together in prayer under strings of lights. A cameraman on a tripod films the scene, and a pink cloth-draped shrine stands at the right edge.2011-11-10November 10 20112011-11-10Night outdoor ritual on an open ground lit by floodlights. In the foreground, a shaved-headed priest in white dhoti and shawl with gold-striped border sits at right, speaking into a microphone and facing a square altar built of yellow-gold blocks with a red border, decorated with mango leaves, coconuts, brass vessels and a banana-leaf tray of fruit. At left, two priests in white clothes sit by the altar; a man in orange robe with a long rudraksha-style bead garland and gold chain sits centre, holding an umbrella-like parasol. Behind them a large seated crowd of hundreds fills the ground, many in white and some women in saris, under strings of lights and a tent. The priest at right seems to be a shaved-headed priest in white; no clear a person cues are visible on the orange-robed figure beyond ritual dress, so identity is uncertain.2011-12-08 +1 copiesNight outdoor ritual at a large gathering. Two saffron-robed priests stand at the front; the foremost, with shaved head and gold armband and bangles, holds a plate draped in red cloth toward a fire-pit style havan arrangement of bricks decorated with flowers, a brass vessel, banana leaves and a lit oil lamp. A bald priest in white kneels at the lower left with folded hands. Behind them a dense crowd of devotees in white dhotis and kurtas stands with palms pressed together under strings of lights. Some women in saris and salwar kameez are visible, and a camera on a tripod stands among the crowd.2011-11-10