Thaipusam

Kuching (hoofdstad van Sarawak, Borneo)

zondag, 19-01-2003

Thaipusam is the most important religious festival celebrated by Hindus. It is observed in the month of ‘Thai’, the tenth month which is a very important month in the Tamil calendar. On Thaipusam, the full moon is in transit through the brightest star, Pusam in the zodiacal sign of Cancer.

For Hindus, Thaipusam is a day of atonement for sins. On this auspicious day, the image of Lord Subramaniam, youngest son of the mighty Shiva - the most awesome God of the Hindu pantheon, is placed on a silver chariot and taken around in a grand procession to the accompaniment of instrumental music.

Devotees who observe this great day of penance, spiritually cleanse themselves by undergoing a month long fast. They observe frequent prayers, consume a single vegetarian meal daily and abstain from sex. Twenty-four hours before the carrying of kavadis, a complete fast is observed by devotees.

Kavadis are carried in fulfilment of vows and pledges taken in devotion to Lord Subramaniam. Kavadis are semicircular steel frames with bars for support on the shoulders, decorated with flowers and peacock feathers. Other devotees walk in sandals embedded with iron nails or stick small spears made of silver through their cheeks, tongues and bodies. However, there appears to be no physical pain encountered through these processes!

Thaipusam, a day of consecration to the Hindu deity, Lord Murugan, sometimes also called Lord Subramaniam. A feature of the festival is the carrying of a kavadi, a frame decorated with colored papers, tinsels, fresh flowers, and fruits as a form of penance. In Kuala Lumpur, Hindus carrying the kavadi make the annual pilgrimage to the Batu Caves in Selangor (Kuala Lumpur, foto), where the kavadi is carried up the 272 steps to the entrance of the great cave and deposited at the feet of the deity.

On the eve of Thaipusam, the grounds of Batu Caves are transformed into a fairyland of lights. Kavadi-carrying begins after sunset. Devotees and penitents carry Kavadis, which are gaily decorated wooden or steel paraphernalia. Some have entered a trance, and pierced their cheeks, tongues, or foreheads. The next day they will return to their ordinary lives, cleansed. Open-door observers of the kavadi do not have to participate in this ritual unless they really, really want to. Apart from the mortification of flesh, other forms of devotion are practiced, such as honey or milk offerings.

In Kuching was de processie niet zo groot, maar daardoor niet minder indrukwekkend. Mannen en vrouwen vertrokken vanaf de rivier door de stad, met stellages op hun schouders, of potten melk. De mannen waren doorspiest met haken, waaraan limoentjes of kannetjes melk hangen. Ze bewegen in trance op de ritmische trommels die hen begeleiden. Als laatste een kar met een kleine tempel erop, voortgetrokken door een man met vier haken in zijn rug die met touwen aan de kar verbonden zijn. Omdat de Indische gemeenschap in Kuching niet zo groot is, was het bijwonen van de processie in de tempel een intieme gebeurtenis, we konden alles van heel dichtbij meemaken. Een indrukwekkende vertoning.... Kijk in onze map 'Thaipusam' voor meer foto's.

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