Children buried alive to please Hindu godesses
In a bizarre 400-year-old traditional ceremony aimed at pleasing two Hindu goddesses, villagers in southern India buried dozens of unconscious children in muddy holes for a minute before digging them up.
All 105 children lived. The ceremony is conducted every five to seven years depending on the position of the stars. It is aimed at pleasing the Hindu goddesses Muthukuzhi Mariamman and Kaliamman.
In the Kuzhimatru Thiruvizha – festival of graves – religious gurus smear ash on the foreheads of children before sprinkling water mixed with turmeric powder onto them. This made the children fall unconscious, witnesses said.
As crowds watched in Perayur, a village 340 miles from Tamil Nadu’s state capital Madras, dozens of workmen dug pits into which the children were placed and then covered in mud.
A minute later they were dug out.
The Indian Express newspaper, said 105 children took part.
The ceremony was witnessed by C Dorairaj, the state’s Minister for Housing.
“None of the children seemed to have any problem after being exhumed,” said one of his relatives. “It is a matter of faith, like walking on fire or body piercing.”
The minister said: “I witnessed the festival at the invitation of the community which organised it. I have nothing more to say on the issue.”
