IQAS Vol. 49 / 2018 3–4, pp. 123–140 © International Quarterly for Asian Studies Thaipusam Kavadī – A Festival Helping Hindus in Mauritius Cope with Fear Marianne Qvortrup Fibiger Abstract With Hindus in Mauritius as a case study, this article will show how Thaipusam Kavadī, a fes- tival of piercing and procession of ancient Tamil origin, has become not only a modern expres- sion of religious afliation in diaspora, but also a way of coping with fear by trying to gain dispensation for possible religious or ethical misconduct in a time and a place where religion has become compartmentalised. To understand this development, the article gives a short intro- duction to the overall theme of fear, including theoretical considerations as a prism to under- stand the factors at play. This is followed by an introduction to Hinduism in Mauritius from a general point of view. Then, using a particular case study and participant observations as a point of departure, the article will explore how Thaipusam Kavadī is conducted and what kind of meaning the participants attribute to their participation. Keywords: fear, piercing rituals, Hinduism, Mauritius, Thaipusam Kavadī Introduction Coping with fear, inauspiciousness and misfortune is often part of most lay-oriented Hindu practices and also frequently at the centre of many daily Hindu prayer rituals (pūjās) – for instance at the morning and evening pūjās at the home altar (mandir), where the worship of deities, gurus and fore- fathers generally also has a protective aspect (Fuller 2004: 224–252, Kumar 2013, Michaels 2017, Rodrigues 2011). This is evident not only in the prayers but also in the oferings; the underlying idea being that if the individual and family are in good standing with the deities, they will be protected against all kinds of inauspiciousness and evil (Falk 2006: 120–122). This is furthermore a key issue in many Hindu folk mythologies, where the emphasis is on the way in which correct conduct and devotion can prevent all kinds of malevolent powers from taking control – for instance demons, restless spirits and evil eyes, as well as angry gods and goddesses who must be given oferings and devotion to make them positively and not negatively inclined (O’Flaherty Marianne Qvortrup Fibiger, Department of the Study of Religion, School of Culture and Society, Aarhus University, Denmark; mf@cas.au.dk.