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Balinese Tooth-filing Ceremony In Indonesia

A Balinese woman is wearing a traditional costume during a mass tooth filing ceremony locally known as Mepandes at Giri Kusuma Temple in Bogor, West Java, Indonesia on July 9, 2023. Mepandes is an important ritual of passage for Balinese Hindus that marks the transition from childhood to adulthood. During the ritual, the six front teeth in the upper jaw are being filed. The heart of the ritual is a symbolic act of purging an individual of the negative traits known as the Sad Ripu or six enemies, lust, greed, anger, anxiety, conceit and envy. Upon the completion of the ritual, the man or woman will be officially acknowledged as an adult, a mature individual who knows and is aware of the differences between vice and virtue. (Photo by Adriana Adie/NurPhoto)

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