World News for Students of English

10-04-2015 07:00

People in India’s Madhya Pradesh state took part in an annual tradition of body piercing which they believe helps cure chicken pox.

On Saturday, villagers pierced thread inside their bodies whilst hymns were sung. During the ritual, four men stand in front and four at the back. It’s believed that God gives them power, so no pain is felt. Men then dance to mark the ritual in the presence of elderly members of the village.

This man told how it is an old tradition followed by their ancestors. He said it’s followed to cure diseases, but mainly chicken pox. Chicken pox is a highly contagious disease caused by infection which then results in skin blisters.

Large groups of people follow a number of customary practices in India which include baby dropping, exorcism by marriage, food rolling, frog marriage and many others.

Difficult words: annual (happening every year), pierce (when a sharp thing cuts or goes through something), thread (a long, thin and sharp piece of fabric), hymn (a religious song), ancestor (a member of your people who lived a long time ago), contagious (to beable to be spread from one person to another), blister (a small bubble), customary (traditional), exorcism (when somebody tries to make an evil spirit leave a place/person).

Source: www.ondemandnews.com