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The magazine of the art-form of the photo-essay “A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine.  Fabulous!” Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film & documentary maker
June 2014 back issue
by Arnaud Andrieu
Walking on Fire Reunion Island
Reunion Island has various ethnic and religious groups. One of them is the Indian Tamil religion, which makes up more than 220,000 people, or 27% of the total population. Walking on fire is an ancient tradition in this community that dates back to the abolition of slavery. Penitents honor Dolvede, the wife of demigod Arjuna, who once proved her loyalty and purity to her husband by walking on fire.  Today the ceremony is synonymous to purifying the mind and the body. Resistance to pain is a sign of faith. To participate you need a three week, thorough physical and mental preparation. On the eve of the event, the wedding of Arjuna and Dolvede is reconstructed followed by long preparations to start the fire. The fire is placed in a rectangle of 18 m² facing the temple. The walkers feed the fire with huge logs. The fire then burns for about ten hours, protected by guards, armed with long rakes of bamboo. Finally the penitents, preceded by drummers, approach the sacred area. The priest walks around the fire while women sitting around a pit, filled with milk, pray and cry. The fire is extremely hot. The atmosphere is tense. Everyone waits for the priest’s sign. Confidently he throws his flower necklace into the fire, and with drums beating, he falls into a trance and rushes onto the glowing and smoking coals. The crying women only calm down once he plunges his feet in milk. The men walk repeatedly across the embers. Next the women gather and, fully in trance, go across the fire three times. The priest concludes the ceremony by blessing all penitents who have demonstrated their courage.
Reenactment of Dolvede and Arjuna's wedding. Reunion Island 2012.
Dolvede and the penitents during the eve of the walk.
Arjuna carrying branches of Neem at dawn to the center of the rectangle.
Blessing of a goat for an offering.
The signal to begin the blaze.
Ablution in the river before the procession.
An isolated penitent praying at the river after his ablution.
A spectator climbing a tree to watch the ceremony.
Dolvede and Arjuna statues during the ceremony.
A penitent crossing the embers while the drumbeat rolls.
A penitent plunges his feet into the blessed milk pit in front of wives who cry.
Penitents shouting encouragment as one of them crosses the embers.
A woman lying in a trance, a branch of Neem in the hand, after the passage of her man across the embers.
The priest's foot after crossing the embers. Usually the priest asks for his people to show him their foot, as proof of their bravery.
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