“The Nine Emperor Gods Festival is a nine-day Taoist celebration beginning on the eve of 9th lunar month of the Chinese calendar, which is observed primarily in Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and also the Riau Islands. In Thailand, this festival is called Tesagan Gin Je, the Vegetarian Festival. It is celebrated throughout the entire country, but the festivities are at their height in Phuket, where about 35% of the population is Chinese. It attracts crowds of spectators because of many of the unusual religious rituals that are performed”. – Wikipedia. Photo: A devotee gest pierced at the Bang Neow shrine in Phuket. (Photo by Paula Bronstein)

A devotee carrying an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, jumps into the Sabarmati river to immerse the idol during the 10-day-long Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Ahmedabad, India, September 11, 2016. (Photo by Amit Dave/Reuters)

People and devotees visit the Jama Masjid mosque in the walled city area of New Delhi on November 26, 2022, after reports stating that Delhi's Jama Masjid management, rolled back a ban on entry of women without families. (Photo by Sajjad Hussain/AFP Photo)

Indian people bang utensils and clap from the balconies of a residential building in Mumbai, India, 22 March 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi asks citizens to impose self-curfew to fight Coronavirus COVID-19 and also ask them to clap, bang the bells and utensils at 5pm Indian time to mark of respect and to thank the medical staff and others working 24 hours, during Covid-19 outbreak to keeping the Indians safe. (Photo by Divyakant Solanki/EPA/EFE)

A devotee takes a holy bath in River Saali in Sankhu on the first day of Swasthani Brata Katha festival in Kathmandu January 5, 2015. During the month long festival, devotees recite one chapter of a Hindu tale daily from the 31-chapter sacred Swasthani Brata Katha book that is dedicated to God Madhavnarayan and Goddess Swasthani, alongside various other gods and goddess and the miraculous feats performed by them. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A Hindu devotee displays his inked hand after taking part in the religious festival of Holi in Vrindavan, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, March 8, 2017. (Photo by Cathal McNaughton/Reuters)

A vegetarian festival devotee gets medical attention after a parade at Jui Tui shrine on September 30, 2014 in Phuket, Thailand. (Photo by Borja Sanchez-Trillo/Getty Images)

NEPAL: A devotee is smeared with a vermillion powder while celebrating the “Sindoor Jatra” vermillion powder festival at Thimi, in Bhaktapur, Nepal, April 14, 2016. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)