【Hizoban Higasa no onna】

It's ironic that men who worship female deities would harass women. But that's exactly what one Malaysian artist is Hizoban Higasa no onnafighting against through a photo series depicting Hindu Goddesses.

Ruby Subramaniam created the photo series in response to a Facebook group that was set up to threaten Hindu women with spray paint, should they be "inappropriately dressed" during Thaipusam.

SEE ALSO: These black and white photos from Singapore's Thaipusam festival will give you chills

Thaipusam is a festival of devotion, where Hindus commemorate the occasion when the Hindu Goddess Parvati gives the Hindu God of war Murugan a spear, to vanquish an evil demon. The festival is celebrated in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa and Sri Lanka on the full moon day of the Tamil month of Thai.

The photo series, titled "This Body Is Mine", attempts to fight body-policing by giving a contemporary art spin to Hindu Goddesses.

The series of nine photos focuses on women reclaiming and embracing their inner Goddesses, according to the self-taught artist, who prefers to be called Ruby. The women represent various deities in Hindu culture -- Lakshimi, the preserver; Kali, the destroyer; and Saraswathi, the creator -- and have their bodies painted with various motifs.

Mashable Trend Report Decode what’s viral, what’s next, and what it all means. Sign up for Mashable’s weekly Trend Report newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

She has studied Hindu symbolism from a young age, and found it to be a great tool for self-discovery.

"When you study about the Hindu Godesses, the holy texts often speak about her character and [she would] be surrounded by elements that embodied those values," she said. "None of those texts reveal information about the length of her saree blouse, or any other part of her attire, except colours that she wore," she said.

Ruby added that if ancient depictions of goddesses in India were to come to life, they would also be considered provocative, asking "how do you put your palms together and worship these deities, but give no respect to the women who embody those values?"

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

She felt threatened and angry when she first heard about the group of men that threatened to spray women with paint. "Is this the biggest issue our society is going through?" Ruby said. "And how long before this turns into a society that would normalise acid attacks on women?"

Ruby has faced many instances of body-policing in Malaysia, a country with increasingly strict dress codes on women.

"I've been told to leave in government offices although I was wearing a formal dress that fell an inch above my knee," she said. "I'm tired of having to think of what others would think of me when I choose to wear something."

She adds: "Can't I just choose to wear what makes me look good? Is that too much to ask?"

---

Featured Video For You

---

These artists are painting with ink made from air pollution

---

• Shopping
• Deals
• Science
• Life
• Tech
• Entertainment
• Games
• Social Good

• The Sad Song of Privilege
• The internet is freaking out about reheated rice. Should you be worried?
• A swarm of 4
• DeepSeek launches new AI model with 671 billion parameters, rivaling GPT
• Koalas are endangered now, and climate change is a big reason why
• NASA just spotted an exploded star blasting vital elements into space
• Former Microsoft and Alibaba veteran Hu Yunhua joins Zhipu AI as head of ChatGLM · TechNode
• Meta changes AI labels on Instagram and Facebook after backlash
• Yet another stellar week in hell.
• NASA spacecraft snaps image of ancient, winding rivers on Mars

• Best vacuum deal: Save $250 on Shark AZ3002 Stratos Upright
• 'Janet Planet' review: Annie Baker's mother
• How AI can revolutionize time management for your small business
• NaNoWriMo says use AI if you want. Here's why you might.
• X's Community Notes are not flagging political misinformation, new report finds
• NYT Connections hints and answers for October 31: Tips to solve 'Connections' #508.
• Best budget tablet deal: Save £50 on Lenovo Tab M11 tablet
• Apple Mac announcement: Everything announced so far
• Webb and Hubble telescopes provide a preview to galactic cannibalism
• How to master time management as a solopreneur

• The National Hologram
• Saturn's 'Death Star' moon has been keeping a big secret
• 2024 space calendar events: NASA missions, total solar eclipse, and more
• 2024 space calendar events: NASA missions, total solar eclipse, and more
• The New Witches of Salem
• A swarm of 4
• Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024's breathtaking shortlist: Photos
• Water discovered on asteroids — by a defunct NASA mission
• The Silent Treatment
• NASA found a super

• NYT Connections hints and answers for May 24: Tips to solve 'Connections' #713.
• The most stunning things NASA scientists just saw on volcano world Io
• NASA telescope discovers a bizarre, half
• Is Samsung Galaxy S25+ dead? Maybe not.
• Reinventing the Wheel
• US weighs potential regulations on Chinese drones · TechNode
• 2024 space calendar events: NASA missions, total solar eclipse, and more
• Is iOS 18 available for iPhone 11?
• The Forgotten Man
• SenseTime cuts back in Singapore following restructuring · TechNode