This weekend the Malaysian Hindu Tamil community will celebrate the occasion of Thaipusam. The word Thaipusam comes from the word “Thai” which means “10th month ” in the Tamil calendar, and Pusam which means “When the moon is brightest”. Thaipusam is the biggest festival for Hindus after Deepavali. It is observed as a day of thanksgiving and paying penance for Lord Murugan. Devotees prepare themselves for the occasion by cleansing their bodies through fasting and abstinence, and usually observe a vegetarian diet for a certain period of time. Many devotees began paying penance a few days before the actual festival, with the carrying of the kavadi (a decorated structure bearing the image of several deities including Lord Murugan) on their shoulders and many women will carry the pal kodum (milk pots) above their heads. Many pay their penance to Lord Murugan by piercing their skin, tongue or cheeks with Vel, metal skewers of various sixes. The largest focal point in Malaysia for Thaipusan is the Batu Caves, just outside Kuala Lumpur. However the photo that I shot above I took in a Palm Oil plantation at Bukit Tagar, north of Kuala Lumpur. The participants were Palm Oil workers and their families. It was far less crowded than Batu Caves, which can actually become unmanageable.