# Thaipusam 2010 At Batu Caves - Festival of Lord Murugan



## mylo (Feb 2, 2010)

30th January 2010 (Saturday) is the celebration of Thaipusam - The Festival of Lord Murugan. 

According to Wikipedia, Thaipusam (Tamil: &#2980;&#3016;&#2986;&#3021;&#2986;&#3010;&#2970;&#2990;&#3021 is a Hindu festival celebrated mostly by the Tamil community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai (Jan/Feb). It is also referred to as Thaipooyam or Thaippooyam in the Malayalam language. The word Thai-pusam is derived from the month name Thai and Pusam, which refers to a star that is at its highest point during the festival.

The festival commemorates both the birthday of Murugan (also Subramaniam), the youngest son of god Shiva and his wife Parvati, and the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan a vel (spear) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman. Source: WIKIPEDIA

In Malaysia, Hindu devotees thronged to Batu Caves (Mythical Limestone Cave) to pay homage Lord Muruga. Over 1.7 million Indians from across the world will visit Batu Caves for this amazing festival. I've just returned from Batu Caves. It was awesome!

*Here are some videos:*






2010 Thapusam Dates Extended - Courtesy of TheStarOnline​





Excellent Thaipusam 2010 Footage - Courtesy of RUNWITME​

*Here are my recent shots of Thaipusam 2010:*

Picture 1 - The Incredible Hulk??  :shock: 







Nope. Gigantic muscled green feet! Belong to Lord Hanuman   

Picture 2 - Lord Hanuman - The Monkey God






A stunning and beautiful statue of Lord Hanuman (Hindu Monkey God,(&#2361;&#2344;&#2369;&#2350;&#2366;&#2344;&#2381. This statue is HUGE! 
He is considered by some to be the 11th incarnation (Rudra avatar) of Lord Shiva, and is considered 
the most powerful and intelligent amongst divine beings. His most famous feat, as described in the 
Ramayana, was leading an army of monkeys to fight the demon King Ravana. Source: Wikipedia

Picture 3 - Paal Kudam (Milk Pot) Bearers 






Devotees bear milk and carry them on their head shoulders as an offering to Lord Muruga - climbing steep 272 steps of stairways. Most devotees will start fasting a month or two before Thaipusam. They will follow strictly a vegetarian diet. Some even sleep on the hard floor for months preparing themselves for the day. So, it's not as easy as I expected!

Picture 4 - Thaipusam: Festival of Lord Muruga






A towering statue of Lord Murugan. Standing at 42.7 meter (140.09 ft) high, the world's tallest statue of Murugan, a Hindu deity, is located outside Batu Caves.

The statue, which cost approximately Rupees 24 million, is made of 1550 cubic metres of concrete, 250 tonnes of steel bars and 300 litres of gold paint brought in from neighboring Thailand.

Thank you for looking!  :blushing: 
mylo


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## bigcat1967 (Feb 2, 2010)

I'm not making fun at all - but my first thoughts of looking at the monkey god looked like it was Homer Simpson.


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