Singapore: People celebrate post-pandemic Thaipusam

The Tamil community in Singapore celebrated their annual Hindu festival of Thaipusam with pomp and fanfare on Sunday, after a two-year hiatus following the pandemic restrictions.

The Thaipusam festival commemorates Lord Muruga, the God of war and fertility, in which devotees participate in a range of activities that range from balancing brass pots of milk on their heads, piercing their bodies with hooks and skewers and carrying wooden structures called kavadis decorated with peacock feather and spears.

More than 35,000 devotees were joined by Singapore’s Manpower Minister Tan See Leng at Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple.

“Life is now coming back to normal and it is indeed a victory of sorts for us as a country and as a people,” the Minister said.

“So, this is really a fantastic indication of who we are, as a culture – multicultural, multi-religious and full of respect for one another’s religions,” The Straits Times newspaper quoted Tan as saying.