A religious devotee in the southern Thai city of Phuket gouges his cheeks with skewers as part of an annual vegetarian festival on Oct. 4. During the celebration, put on by the region's Taoist Chinese community, participants inflict pain on themselves in order to take on the sins of their community, believing it will bring good luck to all. Other participants opted to pierce their faces with more obscure objects, including small guitars, an umbrella, a car muffler and a model helicopter.