Nepalese Hindu women dressed in red collecting holy water during the Madhav Narayan Festival on Monday at Salinadi river in Sankhu near Kathmandu, Nepal.

The festival marked the start of a month devoted to religious fasting, holy bathing and the study of the Swasthani book, a chapter or story of which is read each evening at family gatherings.

More than 220 married and unmarried women and dozens of male devotees started their fast for peace and a better life at temple premises.

Unmarried women fast to get a good husband, and married women for their families’ prosperity. The festival is dedicated to Lord Shiva, the god of creation and destruction.