Bariyarpur, Nepal
A butcher swings his blade to sacrifice a buffalo inside an enclosed compound during the sacrificial ceremony of the Gadhimai festival. The event, renowned for its large number of animal sacrifices, is held every five years at the Gadhimai temple, where devotees from Nepal and bordering India sacrifice buffaloes, goats and birds while offering prayers to the goddess of power
Photograph: Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters