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A hazy photograph of a ritual flame in a bright, smoky space. A woman with long grey hair and bangles in the foreground holds a metal tray of burning fire aloft toward a man in a maroon and gold turban with gold-rimmed glasses and rudraksha mala. Around them, men in orange and red robes and tilaka marks on the forehead watch closely, one with a white-painted forehead. The scene suggests an aarti or homa offering in an assembly.

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January 13 20152015-01-13Smoky ritual scene with a flaming oil lamp or camphor flame on a silver plate. A bald man in white kurta with an orange-and-gold shawl and rudraksha mala holds the plate steady, while a bare-backed priest with long grey hair, white sacred thread and a ceremonial gold-bordered cloth lifts the flame. Around them devotees in saffron and orange robes and turbans raise their hands in gestures of worship, with marigold garlands and a white sacred-ash mark visible. The aarti or puja is performed in a hall filled with smoke and light.2015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13Aarti ritual at an outdoor pandal with white canopy and colourful backdrop. A bearded elder in white dhoti and shawl, with forehead tilak, rudraksha mala and gold pendant, holds a brass plate of burning camphor flame. Beside him, a figure in a red-orange turban and saffron-red cloth with long dark hair and rudraksha bracelets extends hands toward the flame. Behind them, saffron-robed sannyasis press palms together or cover their heads, and devotees in white and orange stand watching.2015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13A photograph of a ritual fire ceremony under a tent with orange-saffron clad men. In the foreground an elderly bearded man with long white hair and a yellow tilak on his forehead, bare-chested with a dark rudraksha mala and gold pendant, holds a copper plate with a flame. Behind him several men in saffron robes stand with hands folded in prayer, one wearing an orange turban. On the right a man with long dark hair in an orange turban and saffron shawl raises his hands to his head in reverence. Colourful banners hang in the background.2015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13Outdoor ceremony under a white tent with a hazy, bright atmosphere. At centre, a man in a red-maroon turban and a dark brown dhoti with gold-toned trim and a long beaded mala holds a silver tray with a lit flame and yellow flowers, while an older woman in orange robes and a white forehead marking and beaded necklace holds the other side of the tray. Behind them a bald older man in orange robes and a man in an orange shawl extend their hands toward the flame. At far left a man in an orange-and-brown striped wrap and rudraksha mala presses palms together in prayer. Several men in white and orange turbans stand in the background, with onlookers and hanging decorations visible. The ritual appears to be an aarti with a lit flame over a tray.2015-01-13January 13 20152015-01-13