A reveller smeared in vermilion powder celebrates the Bisket Jatra Festival in Thimi in the Bhaktapur District on the outskirts of Kathmandu on April 15, 2023. (Photo by Prakash Mathema/AFP Photo)

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)

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)

A Cambodian villager rides a buffalo during the Pchum Ben festival, the festival of death, at Vihear Suor village in Kandal province on October 1, 2016. Thousands of Cambodians descended on the small village northeast of the capital on October 1 to cheer on the annual water buffalo race that marks the end of the 15-day festival for the dead. (Photo by Chor Sokunthea/AFP Photo)

A decorated human skull or “natitas”, sits on a blanket inside the Cementerio General chapel, during the Natitas Festival celebrations, in La Paz, Bolivia, Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The “natitas” are cared for and decorated by faithful who use them as amulets believing they serve as protection, the tradition marks the end of the Catholic All Saints holiday, but is not recognized by the Catholic church. (Photo by Juan Karita/AP Photo)

This picture taken on November 11, 2016 shows participants releasing a hot- air balloon during the Tazaungdaing Lighting Festival at Taunggyi in Myanmar' s northeastern Shan State. The skies of central Myanmar were set ablaze this week with the beginning of the Taunggyi fire balloon festival, one of the most beautiful and dangerous celebrations in Asia. Brightly coloured balloons with hundreds of homemade fireworks woven into their frames are sent soaring into the night sky, showering down cascades of sparks onto adoring crowds. (Photo by Ye Aung Thu/AFP Photo)

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 believer dressed as a “diablo” (devil) jumps at the San Blas' (Saint Blaise) procession during the “Endiablada” festival in Almonacid del Marquesado, in central Spain February 3, 2015. In the “Endiablada”, an undated traditional festival in honour of the Candelaria Virgin and San Blas, believers are dressed in colourful costumes, wear a mitre with lead cowbells tied to their waists that ring as they wander around the village and in front of the saints' statues during their processions. (Photo by Susana Vera/Reuters)