Some more lingering images from Sabarimala

Lingering images of Sabarimala… thick forests; devotes being carried on the doli; and one of several points where beads, malas and other knick-knacks hawked attracted passing devotees.

The fourth picture shows the soothsayers and removers of obstacles at the Malikapuram Temple dedicated to Malikapurathama, who according to legend emerged from the body of the demon, Mahishi, destroyed by Lord Ayyappa. She wanted to marry Ayyappa but he refused, saying he was a Brahmachari. When she pleaded, he said he would when there were no first-time visitors to his shrine.

The last picture might intrigue many. But the mannequin has always been there for years and you usually spot it as you descend. The person owning her sells an assortment of clips and other implements that can be used to style a woman’s hair. Some entrepreneurship… considering that the women who are supposed to trek up and down the hill must be bordering 50 and girls below 10 wouldn’t need them anyway. But who said men don’t buy stuff for their wives and girlfriends back home. They do, and this picture is proof of that.