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At present I am retired and spending my time mostly on fishing and photography. I bought my first SLR way back in 1982. It was a Minolta XG1. My last film camera was the Maxxum 9000. When the fantastic Sony Alpha 100 was launched, I changed over to the digital system. My Alpha 580 was acquired followed closely by my Alpha 77.

My main interest in photography is lifestyles, sports, sceneries, nature, birds and macro shots. Lately, I have spend more time on bird and nature shooting. As a regular contributer to some fishing magazines, I shoot quite a lot of photographs of anglers too....hence my photography blog is named 'SHOOT THE HOOKER'.



Having grown up near the confluence of two, the Kangsar and the Perak Rivers, it is not surprising that one of my main interest is fishing. My younger days were spent swimming and fishing.... with a bamboo pole, line and small hooks.Now while fishing, my friends and I do take a lot of photographs of anglers in action. The anglers must be careful so as not to accidentally hook on to a photographer. So I think as a reminder, I would like to name my fishing blog as 'HOOK THE SHOOTER'.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

MALAYSIAN THAIPUSAM FESTIVAL..


Thaipusam, the Hindu Festival, is mostly observed by the Tamil community in Malaysia. At the Batu Caves temple in Kuala Lumpur, the Nattukotai Chettiar Temple of Penang and the Sri Subramaniam Temple in Ipoh the occasion is celebrated on a grand scale.
This festival is to commemorate the occasion where Parvati gave Murugan a vel (spear) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman.
Carrying the kavadi by devotees is a physical burden through which devotees implore for help from the God, Murugan.
They prepare themselves for the celebration by cleansing themselves through prayers and fasting. Kavadi bearers also observe celibacy and take only satvik (pure and clean) food. Many of them will shave their heads too.
The kavadis can be in many forms. Most will just carry pots of milk, which was the norm, while others will practice mortification of the flesh by piercing their skin, tonques or cheeks.
A believer getting
her head shaved
Even female devotees
shaved their heads.
In a trance.
A devotee with pierced
skin leading the way.
The compulsory bath.
Piercing the skin.
Kavadis can be in all forms.
A young devotee.

A pair of loving parents
soothing their child.
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2 comments:

  1. leewoJuly 19, 2010 at 7:08 PM

    Hi, your shots are really great!

    Recommended by your friend Phang Chew

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ng Chan ChiewAugust 17, 2010 at 9:30 PM

    Thanks for your compliment.

    ReplyDelete

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