Dancers from the Philadelphia Ballet perform for Pope Francis (R) as he attends the Festival of Families rally in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania September 26, 2015. (Photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters)
Nepalese Hindu priests perform rituals during Janai Purnima festival at Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, Thursday, August 18, 2016. During this festival Hindus take holy baths and perform annual change of the Janai, a sacred cotton string worn around their chest or tied on the wrist, in the belief that it will protect and purify them. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)
Lulu, her Playa name, falls into a foam pit as approximately 70,000 people from all over the world gather for the 30th annual Burning Man arts and music festival in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, U.S. September 1, 2016. (Photo by Jim Urquhart/Reuters)
We are all drawn to fire, entranced by its beauty and ferociousness. Its brilliance draws us in like moths to a candle flame. Thus, many of the celebrations that humans have involve lighting fires. They can be big or small; there could be many little lights or one giant inferno; they may float on water, burn on land, or rise high into the skies. Loi Krathong is a festival that is held each year in Thailand and a number of other places. During this festival thousands of little fires are lighted, presenting a marvelous sight for all the onlookers. It is believed that this tradition is an adaptation of Brahmanical festival, which was adopted by Thai Buddhists to honor Buddha.
A Shinto priest prays to the dedicated dolls during the Festival of Repayment of Kindness at Dairoku-tensakaki Shrine in Tokyo, Saturday, May 16, 2015. Traditionally, it is believed that the dolls can give good health and happiness to children by absorbing sickness and ill fate. The dolls are then sacrificed during the festival after they have protected their young owners. (Photo by Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo)
Nepalese women farmers spray mud water at each other while planting rice in a paddy field during the National Paddy Day in the village of Jitpur in Kathmandu, Nepal, 30 June 2015. On this day, known as Asar Pandra, farmers begin the annual rice planting season and mark the day with various festivities such as preparing rice meals with muddy water, spreads mud among farmers. The Mud being a symbol for a prosperous season. The agricultural sector contributes about 60 per cent to Nepal's gross domestic product. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA)
A woman dressed as a Viking drinks local red wine during the annual Viking festival of Catoira in north-western Spain August 2, 2015. The festival re-enacts past Viking raids in the area and is celebrated annually on the first Sunday in August. (Photo by Miguel Vidal/Reuters)
Costumed dancers parade on the first day of the annual Qoyllur Rit'i festival on May 27, 2018 in Ocongate, Peru. Every year, since 1783 in the Sinakara Valley at the foot of Mt Ausagante, the Qoyllur Rit'i, or “Snow and Star” festival draws tens of thousands of pilgrims from across the Peruvian Andes and beyond to what is the biggest religious gathering of its kind. Since 1780 the event merged into a mosaic of indigenous, pagan and Catholic worship when an image of Jesus appeared on a boulder after the death of a young shepherd. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)