lechua photography

Batu Caves is undeniably amongst the top 10 attractions in Kuala Lumpur as quoted in most, if not all travel guide references. The caves are 400 million years old, situated in a natural limestone hill. In the 1800s, the caves became a place of worship for the Hindus, with the largest cave being the Temple Cave. It takes a climb of 272 steps to reach the Temple Cave, where the ceiling of the cave is more than 100m above the ground illuminated by sunlight that shines through openings at the top of the cave.

the golden statue of Lord Murugan stands tall at 42.7m at the foot of the steps to the cave, making it the tallest statue of Lord Murugan in the world

We made a visit to Batu Caves last weekend, which coincided with the 2^nd day of Deepavali, the festival of lights celebrated by Hindus. There were a fair number of Hindus dressed up in their new colourful Deepavali outfits, but of course the place was nowhere near as crowded as during the Thaipusam Festival when there are over 800,000 people gathered to celebrate the official festival dedicated to Lord Murugan. At the entrance, we were greeted by pigeons at the square.

pigeon feeding at the square

At one side of the square, there are flower stalls set up where devotees can buy flowers as offerings to Lord Murugan.

 weaving of flowers for sale

worshippers of all ages 

a young girl ready for the ascent

                             climbing barefoot                            ladies taking a rest in the midst of the climb

Monkeys are seen everywhere along the walk up to the cave. They move at incredible speed, swinging from tree to tree, jumping from one lamp post to another, and down and up the railing and steps. In constant search for food, the monkeys can be aggresive to visitors especially in attempt to grab a drink can or anything that looks edible to them.

ready to pounce

          holding on tight to the flowers           mother and baby sharing a banana peel

Finally at the 272nd step, we arrive at a landing to the entrance of the cave, where a shrine of Lord Murugan glitters under the sunlight. From here, we can observe the sunlight shining through the cave, creating a breathtaking effect on the natural limestone formation of stalactites and stalagmites. With the varied light distribution in the cave, I experimented with shooting with different metering settings. The shots with the sky in view were taken in spot metering mode, focusing on a light-to-medium shade of the inner cave walls; whilst the shots with varied lighting within the cave (but without the sky in the frame), were taken with center-weighted metering.  

the last few steps

shrine of Lord Murugan

captivating view of the cave

spot metering setting

center-weighted metering setting

 shrines of Hindu Gods decorate the interior of the cave

The main temple in the cave is where prayer ceremonies are conducted to the sound of musical instruments. A half coconut and a banana, representing vasanas (human desires) are usually offered during prayers.

half coconut and banana

temple musicians in between prayers

hindu priest blessing devotees

As the sun starts to set, we make our way out and down the stairs. There is still a steady stream of visitors strolling in as the evening gets cooler. Outside, the stalls set up by street vendors are still open, selling souvenirs.

bracelets, anklets and necklaces laid out