Phuket Vegetarian Festival
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A devotee of the Chinese shrine of Ban Tha Rue, pierces his cheeks with swords during a procession at the Vegetarian Festival in Phuket, Thailand. For 10 days, devotees will maintain a vegetarian diet and perform acts of self-mortification. Ritual vegetarianism in Phuket Island traces it roots back to the early 1800s.
In pictures: Religious Thais are performing spectacular acts of
self-mortification at the Phuket Vegetarian Festival