Devotees flock to ghost fair in India to purge evil spirits
A devotee, believed to be possessed by evil spirits, cries as she performs a fire ritual on the sacred platform at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man pulls the hair of a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits as she goes into a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits shouts slogans as she runs in a state of trance around the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits cries in a state of trance while being confronted by her relatives at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
Relatives of a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits hold him as he walks in a state of trance around the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee, believed to be possessed by evil spirits, cries in a state of trance as she walks around the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
Relatives of a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits take off her jewellery before performing rituals at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits cries in a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man tries to hold a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits as she goes into a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A Hindu priest pulls back a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits before hitting her with a broom as she goes into a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man pulls a devotee, believed to be possessed by evil spirits, by the hair as she goes into a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
Relatives of a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits, hold her as she runs in a state of trance around the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man pulls devotees who are believed to be possessed by evil spirits by the hair while confronting them as they go into a state of trance at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A man holds a devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits by her hair while confronting her as she goes into a state of trance while lying on a sacred platform at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits lies on a sacred platform at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee, believed to be possessed by evil spirits, goes into a state of trance as she lies in the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits lies in a state of trance on a sacred platform at Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
A devotee who is believed to be possessed by evil spirits smokes a bidi as she walks around the courtyard of Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 27, 2013. --PHOTO: REUTERS
(REUTERS) - Devotees believed to be possessed by evil spirits, travelled to Guru Deoji Maharaj temple during a ghost fair at Malajpur village in Betul district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh on Jan 26 and 27, 2013.
People from across India come to this fair to be exorcised of evil spirits.












