Men hung from hooks in their backs in Tamil Hindu procession, near Trincomalee, Sri Lanka. One is asked to hold a baby to bring the child good luck

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The piercing by skewers symbolises several things: that the pilgrim has temporarily renounced the gift of speech so that he or she may concentrate more fully upon the deity that the devotee has passed wholly under the protection of the deity who will not allow him/her to shed blood or suffer pain the transience of the physical body in contrast with the enduring power of truth

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Size: 3888px × 2592px
Location: north of Uppuveli beach, near Trincomalee, Sri Lanka
Photo credit: © Lucy Calder / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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