India - Kaavadi Bearer

During Thaipusam, not everyone pierces their bodies or bears painful Kaavadi (burden), but the ones who do create quite a spectacle.

Sent by Kishore from Tamilpādi in the State of Tamil Nādu, India.

The Kavadi Attam is the sacrificial offering performed by devotees to Lord Murugan during the auspicious festival day of Thaipusam. The Kavadi itself is a physical burden through which the devotees implore offering prayers for fulfiled or some future requirements from Lord Muruga
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Devotees prepare for the celebration by cleansing themselves through prayer & fasting for 48 days before Thaipusam. Kavadi-bearers have to perform ceremonies at the time of assuming the kavadi & at the time of offering it to Murugan. The kavadi-bearer observes celibacy, consumes only vegan food & are on a continuous thinking of God. On the day of the festival, devotees shave their heads & undertake a pilgrimage along a set route, while engaging in various acts of devotion, notably carrying various types of kavadis (read more).

India - Royal Bengal Tiger

Royal Bengal Tiger.

Sent by Vivek from Uttar Pradesh, India.

This is from Wikipedia : The Bengal tiger, or Royal Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), is a tiger subspecies native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, and has been classified as endangered by IUCN as the population is estimated at fewer than 2,500 individuals with a decreasing trend. None of the Tiger Conservation Landscapes within the Bengal's tiger range is large enough to support an effective population size of 250.

The Bengal tiger is the most numerous of the tiger subspecies — with populations estimated at 1,411 in India, 200 in Bangladesh, 155 in Nepal and 67–81 in Bhutan.

The Bengal tiger is the national animal of Bangladesh. Panthera tigris is the national animal of India.

Its coat is a yellow to light orange, and the stripes range from dark brown to black; the belly is white, and the tail is white with black rings. A mutation of the Bengal subspecies, the white tiger, has dark brown or reddish brown stripes on a white background, and some are entirely white. Black tigers have tawny, yellow or white stripes on a black background color. The skin of a black tiger, recovered from smugglers, measured 259 cm (102 in) and was displayed at the National Museum of Natural History, in New Delhi. The existence of black tigers without stripes has been reported but not substantiated.

The total body length, including the tail, of males is 270 to 310 cm (110 to 120 in), while females are 240 to 265 cm (94 to 104 in). The tail measures 85 to 110 cm (33 to 43 in), and the height at the shoulder is 90 to 110 cm (35 to 43 in). The average weight of males is 221.2 kg (488 lb), while that of females is 139.7 kg (308 lb).

Male Bengal tigers from the northern Indian subcontinent are as large as Siberian tigers with a greatest length of skulls of 332 to 376 mm (13.1 to 14.8 in). In northern India and Nepal, males have an average weight of 235 kg (520 lb), and females 140 kg (310 lb). Recent studies of body weights of the different tiger subspecies have shown that Bengal tigers are on average larger than Siberian tigers.

The Bengal tiger's roar can be heard for up to 3 km (1.9 mi) away.

India - Auto Rickshaw

INDIA
Auto Rickshaw

Sent by Rahgav from India.

"This is a cheap method of transport between attractions. You can find an auto stand at almost every bus stop, and at important places near junctions and residential areas. Make sure you agree on a fare with the driver before the journey. The govt fixed rates starts at Rs 10 for the first 1.25 km and Rs 6 per km thereafter with a premium of 15% at night (7PM-6AM). Pre-paid auto stands are available only in railway stations." (Source)