More than just monkeying around: Indian artists dress up for spring Hindu festival

Indian artists dressed up as the Hindu deity Hanuman – the monkey God in Hindu mythology – to mark the Rama Navami festival in Bangalore yesterday. Rama Navami is a spring Hindu festival that celebrates the birthday of the deity Rama. He is particularly important to the Vaishnavism tradition of Hinduism as the seventh avatar of Vishnu. The day is marked by Rama Katha recitals or reading of Rama stories. Some Vaishnava Hindus visit a temple, others pray within their home and some take part in a bhajan or kirtan with music. The festival is an occasion for moral reflection for many Hindus.