Pressing his palms together, Jujubhai Basan Shrestha raises his hands, acknowledging greetings from the cheering crowd of devotees and onlookers. Sporting a white turban, the 31-year-old sits on a chair as a man inserts a 13 inch metal skewer through his tongue in a centuries-old ritual in this poor settlement, 12 km (8 miles) east of Kathmandu.
The scene at the weekend, on the second day of Nepal's New Year, was unique to Bode, a sleepy village of 8,000 people from the devout Newar community, who are thought to have been the early settlers of the saucer-like Kathmandu valley.
