The chariot of God Bhairab is pulled through the city centre of Bhaktapur near Kathmandu during the Bisket festival April 10, 2015. The festival, which runs for more than a week and coincides with the Nepalese New Year, involves devotees offering prayers and the pulling of two chariots, one carrying the idol of God Bhairab and the other with the idol of Goddess Bhadrakali, around the ancient city of Bhaktapur. Devotees participate in the festival with the belief that they will be blessed with good health, fortune and harvest for the coming year. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

A woman receives a traditional cleansing in the church of San Simon in Iztapa, Chimaltenango, Guatemala, October 28, 2015. People in Guatemala revere San Simon, also known by his Mayan name Maximon o Ry Laj Man, on October 28 annually. For some devotees, San Simon is synonymous with prosperity and happiness, while others associate him with witchcraft, paganism and a protector for drunkards. Since the 19th century, devotees have offered money, liquor or tobacco in exchange for his blessings. (Photo by Jorge Dan Lopez/Reuters)

A devotee carrying an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, jumps into the Sabarmati river to immerse the idol on the last day of the 10-day-long Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Ahmedabad, India, September 27, 2015. (Photo by Amit Dave/Reuters)

A devotee of the Chinese Samkong Shrine walks with flowers pierced through his cheeks during a procession celebrating the annual vegetarian festival in Phuket, Thailand, October 16, 2015. The festival, featuring face-piercing, spirit mediums and strict vegetarianism celebrates the local Chinese community's belief that abstinence from meat and various stimulants during the ninth lunar month of the Chinese calendar will help them obtain good health and peace of mind. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

A Hindu devotee dressed as Potharaju, the brother of the Hindu goddess Mahakali, performs during the Bonalu festival procession at the Sri Ujjaini Mahakali Temple in Secunderabad, the twin city of Hyderabad on July 18, 2022. (Photo by Noah Seelam/AFP Photo)

Passengers travel in an overcrowded train in the eastern Indian city of Patna, February 23, 2010. (Photo by Krishna Murari Kishan/Reuters)

“Kavadi Attam is a dance performed by the devotees during the ceremonial worship of Murugan, the Tamil God of War. It is often performed during the festival of Thaipusam and emphasizes debt bondage. The Kavadi itself is a physical burden through which the devotees implore for help from the God Murugan”. – Wikipedia

Photo: A devotee pulls his procession burden connected by hooks pierced in his back during the Thaipusam procession at Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple on February 7, 2012 in Singapore. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

A devotee is smeared with a vermillion powder while celebrating the “Sindoor Jatra” vermillion powder festival at Thimi, in Bhaktapur, Nepal, April 14, 2016. Devotees mark the festival by playing traditional drums, singing, dancing and carrying chariot of various deities around town while throwing vermillion powder to welcome the advent of spring and the New Year. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)