Indian people surrounding warrior god idol celebrate eunuch festival

In this Monday, April 22, 2013 photo, Indian eunuchs interact with each other after they dress to travel to Koovagam for the eunuch festival, in Vilupuram, in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Eunuchs from all over India gather in this village to re-enact a story adopted from the Indian epic Mahabharata, in which they symbolically marry Aravan, believed to be the patron god of transgender communities. Aravan sacrificed himself to ensure the victory of the Pandava brothers.

An idol of warrior god Aravan is taken in a chariot during the annual eunuch festival at Koovagam, in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Wednesday, April 24, 2013.

An Indian eunuch dances in a trance after the widow ritual symbolizing the death of warrior-God Aravan at the annual eunuch festival in Koovagam, in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Wednesday, April 24, 2013. <AP Photo/Arun Sankar K.>