Saturday, September 24, 2022

Waiting to be sacrificed

 


"Dakota of Earth" continues to amaze us in this 15-minute clip from the northeast Indian state of Assam, part of it unnarrated. Dakota somehow managed to enter a Shakta Tantric temple and live to tell the tale. 

Or maybe it´s not that dramatic, since the Kamakhya Mandir in Guwahati seems to be a public place of worship, dedicated to the local goddess Kamakhya, who is worshipped in the form of a stone.

The temple does give a bizarre impression, at least if Neo-Gothic cathedrals is the closest you´ve been to the dark side of the Force. Black or deformed goats roam freely on the temple grounds, at least until they are sacrificed, their blood then used to paint swastikas on the temple walls. Well, at least I think it´s blood! Same procedure with pigeons. The idols look like the ones in Khajuraho.

The Kamakhya Temple is surrounded by smaller shrines dedicated to other Tantric goddesses. There are also weird shops for "puja-related merch", but I´m not sure if the Spiderman toys are really sacrificed to the Goddess, and if so, how!

The clip ends with Dakota gently stroking a holy cow that seems to roam freely outside the temple area. At least this animal seems reasonably safe even in Guwahati... 


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