Indian women take part in centuries-old fertility ritual by eating from temple floor
Hundreds of women gathered at a temple in India's southern Tamil Nadu state on Wednesday for an annual fertility ritual in which devotees eat food from the ground in the hope of conceiving a child.
Footage from the Arumugaswamy Paradesi Siddhar Temple in Sethupet shows women in colourful saris receiving food from priests and gathering for prayers before kneeling with their hands behind their backs to eat food placed on the ground.
The ceremony was held during Aadi Amavasai, a new-moon day in the Tamil calendar.
Local villager Parandaman said the tradition dates back around 200 years and has continued at the temple for generations.
"The highlight of the program is childless women getting pregnant after attending this ritual. It is very successful," he said.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Yemen warns of response to alleged airspace violations
Parandaman said a couple who had twins after participating in the ritual had returned to make an offering to the temple equal to the weight of their babies.
The tradition is linked to a Siddhar, a figure in Tamil spiritual tradition believed by devotees to have attained Jeeva Samadhi, and continues to attract hundreds of women hoping to start or expand their families.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
