faces of india

anita

2007-09-21T18:52:11Z

the 5th of nine daughters of a rural rajasthan family. the 10th child was finally the long wished for son. in india the phrase 'raising a daughter is like watering the plants of the neighbour' is a sad reality, which even leads to abortion after sex-identification with ultrasonic. 'fortunatly' ultrasonic is not very common in rural areas.

mela greeting

2007-04-19T11:32:56Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007. pilgrim from the south of india who came to the cold north to be part of this 6 week megaevent at the confluence of two holy rivers, the ganges and the yamuna. after he joined the last 'full' mela in 2001 it was his biggest wish to part of this 'half' event again.

mela pilgrim

2007-04-18T11:45:03Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007. pilgrim from radjastan who financed her trip by asking for alms from other pilgrims. she came alone from her 1000km away home because it could be her last chance to attend a khumb mela - the next will be in 2013.

pilgrim joint

2007-04-17T20:54:15Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: another 'normal' pilgrim enjoying a joint with his pilgrim friends. some of these guys look quite wild - but they are sannyasins - ascethic living hindu monks - they own nothing but what they wear :-)

blind pilgrim 2

2007-04-16T16:27:10Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: this blind pilgrim had come from her 500km away village with her daughter.

mela boat

2007-04-15T21:55:35Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: pilgims that can afford a boat take it out to 'sangam' where the shallow, muddy ganges meets the clearer deeper, greener yamuna. this hindu had his altar built up in his boat and was looking towards the sunrise.

pilgrim rest

2007-04-14T18:47:29Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: pilgrim resting in the hot afternoon sun near his camp. most pilgrims spend the day after the sunrise bathing rituals resting and talking with member of their camp. the main spiritual activities take place all night when the camps of the different ashrams are full of life and the teaching of the gurus can be heard through hundreds of loudspeakers.

mela morning 2

2007-04-13T13:31:39Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007. old pilgrim after a cold night in a tent. she was staying on the mela ground with her entire clan for the total 6 weeks of the event.

pilgrim paint

2007-04-12T16:12:38Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: pilgrim with typical face paint of sannyasin.

mela child

2007-04-12T13:01:45Z

'half' khumb mela in allahabad feb 2007: this child was waiting on the pier where the boats with the 'rich' pilgrims arrive and asking for alms. she was alone - i could not find out if her parents had sent her.