A Hindu temple in Nepal has begun its ritual of animal sacrifice, which it conducts every five years. The animals are sacrificed to Gadhimai, a Hindu goddess of power. The temple in Bariyapur is located about 95 miles from Kathmandu, in Nepal's southern plains bordering India.
The sacrifice at the Bariyapur festival is considered the largest mass slaughter of animals on the planet. Priests at the Hindu temple will kill some 200,000 animals and birds in the ancient ritual. The festival is a centuries-old tradition.
According to organizers, the more than 200,000 animals killed include buffaloes, goats, roosters and pigeons. The festival has become larger and larger in scope, partially because such ceremonies have been banned in many areas in the neighboring Indian state of Bihar.
Animal rights activists have called for an end to the centuries-old ceremony. However, animal rights activists have very little power in Nepal. In fact, at the temple where the ceremoies were being held, there were no activists visible.
While the ceremony may seem barbaric, ritualistic, and backward to many, experts state that the situation is not going to change anytime soon. Ram Bahadur Chetri, an anthropology professor at Katmandu's Tribhuwan University said: "They continue these animal sacrifice rituals because they believe it is a tradition that can't be broken. The people who follow these traditions believe that if they discontinue, then the gods will get angry and there could be catastrophe in the country."
Buffaloes, goats, chicken and ducks are also sacrificed at most Hindu homes in Nepal during the Dasain festivals. Those fell in September this year.
Written by Michael Santo
HULIQ.com
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