India is definitely a country where strange things happen and take place at mystical sights. At this temple in Mangalore hundreds of men clad in dhoti throwing fire-lit torches at each other in the compound, while a score of spectators watches them trying to set one another ablaze.
The ‘Agni Keli’ custom that involves the act of fire fighting to appease the deity. At the Kateel Durga Parameswari Temple in Mangalore, Agni Keli is one act that several devotees in attendance look forward to. Kateel is a temple town located about 30 km away from Mangalore city in Karnataka.
The festival of Kateel Durga Parameswari Temple takes places in the month of April each year for about eight consecutive days. It begins on the eve of Mesha Sankramana Day. On the second dusk of the fest, hundreds of men hit the ground of the temple to throw burning palm fronds at each other to practice the age-old tradition.
