Locals light firecrackers on the occasion of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, in Chennai, India on November 12, 2023. (Photo by Idrees Mohammed/EPA/EFE)
Hindu women apply “sindhur”, or vermillion powder, on the face of a woman after worshipping the idol of the Hindu goddess Durga on the last day of the Durga Puja festival in Chandigarh, India October 11, 2016. (Photo by Ajay Verma/Reuters)
A sadhu (Hindu holy man) smokes marijuana using a “chillum”, a traditional clay pipe, as a holy offering during the Hindu festival “Maha Shivaratri” in Kathmandu on February 21, 2020. (Photo by Prakash Mathema/AFP Photo)
Pakistani Hindu girls with their brother celebrate the Hindu festival 'Raksha Bandhan' at a temple in Karachi on August 30, 2023. (Photo by Rizwan Tabassum/AFP Photo)
A boy dressed as Hindu Lord Shiva poses before performing in a religious procession at the Mahashivratri festival in Allahabad, India, March 7, 2016. Hindus across the country celebrate Mahashivratri, better known as Lord Shiva's wedding anniversary. (Photo by Jitendra Prakash/Reuters)
An Indian Hindu man dressed as Lord Shiva holds a lit candle in his mouth as he takes part in a religious procession ahead of the Maha Shivratri Festival in Jalandhar on February 22, 2017. Hindus mark the Maha Shivratri festival by offering special prayers and fasting to worship Lord Shiva, the lord of destruction. (Photo by Shammi Mehra/AFP Photo)
A man dressed as Pothuraju, a mythical character, performs rituals during the Bonalu festival in Hyderabad, India, Thursday, June 30, 2022. Bonalu is a month-long Hindu folk festival of the Telangana region dedicated to Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction. (Photo by Mahesh Kumar A./AP Photo)
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)