In Sri Lanka, the annual festival at historic Kataragama temple attracts devotees from all faiths. The fortnight long festival began last week and is joined by people all over Sri Lanka and abroad.
Kataragma is a multi religious city as it contains a mosque within the temple complex and a Buddhist temple nearby, considered to be one of the 16 main places of Buddhist pilgrimage in Sri Lanka. The small town hosts a fortnight-long festival or Esala Perahera, one of the most cultural and spiritual significant events in Sri Lanka. The perahera sees a grandly decorated elephant carrying the Kataragama Deviyo, flanked by dancers and drummers.