Photographers take photographs of the Large Air Tanker (LAT) C-130 Hercules, also known as “Thor”, as it drops a load of around 15,000 litres during a display by the Rural Fire Service ahead of the bushfire season at RAAF Base Richmond Sydney, Australia, September 1, 2017. (Photo by David Gray/Reuters)

Thai Princess Bajrakitiyabha (R) and Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana take part in the funeral procession for the late Thai king Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok on October 26, 2017 A sea of black- clad mourners massed across Bangkok' s historic heart early on October 26 as funeral rituals began for King Bhumibol Adulyadej, a revered monarch whose passing after a seven- decade reign has left Thailand bereft of its only unifying figure. (Photo by Damir Sagolj/Reuters)

An exile Tibetan monk gestures as he makes a point in a dialectics debate with another monk, sitting right, at the Kirti monastery in Dharmsala, India, Monday, January 18, 2016. The debate is an essential part of their training as Buddhist monks. (Photo by Ashwini Bhatia/AP Photo)

A model presents a creation from the Jeremy Scott Spring/Summer 2015 collection during New York Fashion Week September 10, 2014. (Photo by Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

Lu Wei-ming (L), priest of the Wei-ming temple, and a worshipper burn a Taoist paper amulet during a prayer ritual at the temple in New Taipei city January 8, 2015. The shrine, down a narrow alleyway in a bustling district of the city, is dedicated to a deity who has watched over homosexuals for four centuries. Priest Lu founded the temple in 2006, at a time gays were excluded from most religious ceremonies. (Photo by Pichi Chuang/Reuters)

Seehund “Bruno” looks out of his transport box before making his way to the water on the beach of the island of Juist, Germany on August 14, 2013. Four young seals were released after six weeks of recovery at a rescue station in Norden-Norddeich. (Photo by Carmen Jaspersen/AFP Photo/DPA)

Rangoli, also known as kolam or Muggu, is a folk art from India in which patterns are created on the floor in living rooms or courtyards using materials such as colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals. It is usually made during Diwali, Onam, Pongal and other Indian festivals. They are meant to be sacred welcoming areas for the Hindu deities. The ancient symbols have been passed down through the ages, from each generation to the next, keeping both the art form and the tradition alive. Similar practices are followed in different Indian states: in Tamil Nadu, there is Kolam in Tamil Nadu; Mandana in Rajasthan; Chaookpurna in Chhattisgarh; Alpana in West Bengal; Aripana in Bihar; Chowk pujan in Uttar Pradesh; Muggu in Andhra Pradesh and others.

Indian paramilitary forces march during the annual Republic Day parade on Rajpath in New Delh, January 26, 2013. Republic Day commemorates the 1950 adoption of India's constitution. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Associated Press)