A firefighter passes through fire in a firefighting drill on December 7, 2021 in Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province of China. (Photo by Zeng Peng/VCG via Getty Images)
An artist performs a fire kettle show during the Mid-Autumn Festival at a night market in Beijing, Tuesday, September 17, 2024. (Photo by Andy Wong/AP Photo)
An Indian soldier blows fire as he performs an acrobatic manoeuvre known as 'Mallakhamb' during an event in Jaipur on December 5, 2024. (Photo by Himanshu Sharma/AFP Photo)
The towers of the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, which was ravaged by a fire in 2019, are reflected in a puddle ahead of the reopening ceremonies, in Paris, France, on December 4, 2024. (Photo by Stephanie Lecocq/Reuters)
A woman cries outside her house after armed gangs set it on fire in the Post Marchand neighborhood of Port-au-Prince on December 17, 2024. (Photo by Clarens Siffroy/AFP Photo)
A Fulton Hotshot lights a controlled burn on the so-called “Rough Fire” in the Sequoia National Forest, California, August 21, 2015. In California, suffering its worst drought on record, about 2,500 people were forced to flee Christian camps east of Fresno at Hume Lake as the so-called Rough Fire crossed Highway 180, officials said. (Photo by Max Whittaker/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.
Riot police fire tear gas at demonstrators during a protest against fare hikes for city buses in Sao Paulo, Brazil, January 8, 2016. Brazilian riot police on Friday fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a violent protest against a rise in public transport fares in the country's largest city, Sao Paulo. (Photo by Nacho Doce/Reuters)