B is for Black

Each January 9, the city of Manila holds a procession in honor of the Black Nazarene, locally known as Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno. 

The Black Nazarene is a dark hardwood statue of Jesus that was carved in Mexico by an Aztec carpenter and brought to the Philippines in the 18th century. The story goes that the wood statue was blackened in transit by a fire on the ship. The statue, believed to confer miracles, is kept in the Quiapo Church.

For the procession, male devotees in bare feet and dressed in maroon pull the Black Nazarene through the streets on a gilded carriage. Followers seek to catch a glimpse, if not touch, the statue in hopes of being healed, being cleansed of their sins, or receiving another kind of miracle.

Devotees from all over the Philippines come to participate in the Fiesta of the Black Nazarene. They bring banners from their neighborhood, association or whatever group they attend with, as well as their own versions of the statue on platforms carried on shoulders. Believers throw towels or handkerchiefs to the people, mostly children, guarding the statue and ask them to rub the cloth on the statue in order to receive its blessings.

This year, the crowd was estimated at 7-8 million, the largest ever, partly perhaps because it fell on a Sunday, and  the procession from beginning to end went from 7:30 am to midnight.  I joined the fiesta with a friend for a couple of hours in the morning. These are a few of my images [click to enlarge] to tell the story.

Manila, 2011

The final photo shows the real Black Nazarene statue.

This is linked to ABC Wednesday where the letter of the week is B.

Browns in a Buddhist Temple

Earlier this year my friend Deepak in Kathmandu took us to this tiny temple full of little treasures. I was peacefully taking it all in when a group of pilgrims from Tibet arrived to do the rounds of the prayer wheels, a ritual to spread spiritual blessings and invoke good karma in their next life. They seemed not to mind me at all as I continued to photograph as inconspicuously as I could.

Kathmandu, 2010

I don't know what this fearsome looking bronze creature represents, but from its well worn paws I surmise that touching them brings earthly luck.

This Buddhist woman is using her prayer beads to count her mantras, much like a Catholic counts prayers on a rosary.

This post will have too many photos, but I couldn't resist sharing this baby. Here on the motionless prayer wheel you can also see the markings of the most important mantra in Tibetan script, Om mani padme hum:

Each prayer wheel contains a roll of paper inscribed with multiples of this mantra. Spinning the wheels, always clockwise, is believed to have the same effect as saying or thinking the mantra, the aim being to develop compassion and wisdom and to get closer to reaching enlightenment.

Before leaving the temple, each pilgrim rang the bell:

This handsome man was in the temple when I arrived and when I left, perhaps the caretaker. His cap makes me think he is Muslim, and that would not be unusual, as in Nepal, according to Deepak, the two main religions co-exist peacefully and inter-marriage is not rare.

These beautiful browns in a temple join the meme Theme Thursday where today's theme is, you guessed it, BROWN. Click on the link to find links to more beautiful browns. And clicking any photo will enlarge it in a different tab in your browser.