Top 10 Weirdest Festivals of Asia
Festivals are the most exciting part of cultures and are held either in the honour of some historical event, religious beliefs or other social reasons. Almost every culture in the world has some sort of festivals associated with it.
Asia has a rich and diverse culture and therefore many festivals are celebrated throughout the year in different countries.
Of course the first thing that comes to mind when you hear about an upcoming festival is fun. But sometimes people perform crazy things in the name of fun. Although there are lots of festivals held in Asia throughout the year, there are some other weird festivals that are also celebrated in this region.
Listed are some of the weirdest festivals of Asia that are nothing more then dangerous stunts or even at times shameful practices that people execute with pride under the guise of festivity.
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1
Thaipusam:
This festival is celebrated by Tamilis in India. The people take a bath and then they fast for the whole day of the full moon. The strange part about this festival is that they perform flesh piercings of the tongue, cheeks, belly and chest. To them more pain means more blessings by their God.
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2
Monkey Buffet Festival:
This is yet another weird festival and is held in Thailand in Pra Prang Sam Yot temple. This festival is held every year in November and has been declared as the weirdest festival by London’s Guardian Newspaper. As the name suggests this festival is organised to give a party to monkeys. People from different places come to distribute fruits. This festival is held to promote tourism in a very strange way.
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3
Hadaka Matsuri:
The Hadaka Matsuri is held in Japan and is a very superstitious festival. This is more then a shameful festival as people wear the minimum amount of clothing and surround a man who is totally naked. It is believed that the one who will touch him first will be able to transmit all his bad deeds to the naked man. Strange isn’t it?
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4
Krishna Janmashtami:
This is a religious festival held during August or September in India on the birthday of their Lord Krishna. They consider Krishna as their hero and therefore they fast the whole day. The weird part of this festival is that the people perform an unusual stunt during this festival. They mount on one another forming the shape of a triangle. They do so in order to reach for the containers of curds that are suspended from high buildings.
- Image Courtesy: guardian.co.uk
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5
Chinese Ghost Festival:
This is a three day festival celebrated by the people of China. The weird thing about this festival is that the Chinese believe in ghosts and spirits even in this age of science and technology. It is believed that there are some restless ghosts or spirits around during this time. The Chinese believe that burning pieces of paper and money will tell them they do not give cash any importance and hence give them peace. During this festival they turn on lanterns to keep those restless souls away.
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6
Songkran Festival:
This is another fun festival that comes in the month of April. It is celebrated in Thailand and the good thing about it is that it is meant for those who love water fighting. The tools used are water guns and balloons.
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7
Boryeong Mud Festival:
This festival is held in South Korea and it is celebrated for seven days. It’s a fun festival but the bizarre thing about it is that it is celebrated by performing different fun activities using mud. These activities include mud bathing, sliding, and fighting or dancing. However, the main motive behind this festival is to promote the South Korean mud for skin conditions. They believe that their mud has the quality of treating different types of ailments.
- Image Courtesy: guardian.co.uk
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8
Holi Festival:
This is fun festival held in India and is about colours. It is held in March and the festivity lasts for two days. The first day is called Holika Dehen and the second day is Dulendi. During the first day borne fire is celebrated while the following day people meet with their relatives, friends and families and throw colours on each other.
- Image Courtesy: justthetravel.com
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9
Konaki Sumo Festival:
This is one of the weirdest festivals of Asia and is held in Japan. In this festival the Sumos fight by carrying babies in their hands. The weird part about this competition is that the fight between Sumos is held in order to make the babies cry. The baby who cries first will be the winner. It is believed that the baby who will cry first will be bestowed with good health.
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10
Phuket Vegetarian festival:
This festival is held once in a year in Phuket, Thailand. The aim of this festival is not to eat anything other then veggies and fruits for 10 days. Many people believe that this will lead to their spiritual purification. The weird part of this festival is that many unusual and risky stunts are executed which need a lot of courage. One of these dangerous stunts is walking on a bed of coals with bare feet.
- Image Courtesy: ibtimes.com
