Worshippers gather and perform Eid al-Fitr prayers at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. They perform Eid prayers to celebrate Eid al-Fitr. This marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, a period of fasting and prayer. Mecca is the holiest city in Islam.

mitv

Nepal is celebrating the Hindu festival of Chaitra Navratri, one of the most significant festivals dedicated to the worship of Goddess Durga and her nine divine incarnations.

Devotees were seen visiting Goddess temples to offer prayers on the first day of the festival that will culminate with celebration of Ram Navami, the birthday of Lord Ram, a revered Hindu diety. Chariot with goddess was being pulled by devotees who danced and sang to the tune of local music and playing of traditional instruments.

mitv

In Viet Nam, Yen Tu Spring Festival celebrated in the northern province of Quang Ninh on Thursday marking an important milestone following the July 2025 UNESCO World Cultural Heritage inscription of the Yen Tu – Vinh Nghiem – Con Son, Kiep Bac Complex of Monuments and Landscapes.

The festival sought to reaffirm the diverse tangible and intangible values of Truc Lam Zen Buddhism, a distinctly Vietnamese tradition now more than 700 years old.The event also featured displays of the Tran Dynasty antiquities and rare Truc Lam Buddhism documents, along with culinary fair boasting over 100 booths offering handicrafts, bronze and wooden ritual items, and local specialities. 

mitv

Cambodian monks chanted blessings and scattered flowers Friday over 74 cultural artefacts returned to the country after being plundered by a notorious British antiques smuggler. Scholar Douglas Latchford -- once regarded as a key authority on Cambodian antiquities -- was charged by prosecutors in New York in 2019 with smuggling looted Cambodian relics to sell on the international black market.

Cambodia's culture ministry said the repatriation from Britain of the relics, some dating back more than around 1,000 years, was sealed in a deal with the estate of Latchford -- who died in Bangkok in 2020.

mitv

Worshippers queue at the Qalandia Israeli checkpoint as they wait to cross into Jerusalem to perform the first Friday prayers of Ramadan at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. Israel announced that it will cap the number of Palestinian worshippers from the occupied West Bank attending weekly Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in east Jerusalem at 10,000 during the holy month of Ramadan, which began Wednesday.

mitv

Hundreds of pilgrims from across Nepal and India gathered at Kathmandu’s revered Pashupatinath Temple to celebrate the sacred festival of Maha Shivaratri, held in honour of the Hindu deity Shiva.

The sprawling temple complex was filled with devotion as worshippers offered prayers, lit oil lamps and observed rituals throughout the day and night. One of the most significant festivals in the Hindu calendar, Maha Shivaratri draws devotees and visitors seeking spiritual reflection and blessings.

Holy men, known as sadhus, were among the most prominent participants, following long-standing traditions of meditation and prayer, with their bodies smeared in sacred ashes. Authorities facilitated smooth arrangements for pilgrims, ensuring security and orderly access to the temple grounds.

mitv

Marking a historic spiritual milestone, India sent the sacred Devnimori Relics of Lord Buddha for their first-ever international exposition, on the occasion of Sri Lanka’s National Day. The Holy Relics will be enshrined at Colombo’s revered Gangaramaya Temple from February 4th to 10th, where thousands of devotees are expected to gather for veneration.

The journey of these holy relics not only showcases nation’s rich Buddhist heritage to the world but also undertakes profound gesture of India’s spiritual outreach and cultural diplomacy towards Sri Lanka.

mitv

Worshippers at a Buddhist temple in Tokushima City in western Japan, followed ascetic monks in a traditional fire-walking ritual to pray for good health on Setsubun. Dainichiji Temple, the 13th of the 88 temples on the famed pilgrimage route in Shikoku, hosts the event every year on Setsubun and on July 18 at its inner temple of Konjiji. Setsubun is the last day of winter on the traditional Japanese calendar. It fell on February 3, Tuesday this year.

mitv

Tens of thousands of Philippine Catholics swarm a historic statue of Jesus Christ as it was paraded through the streets of Manila on Friday in the nation's biggest annual religious event.

The day-long procession began before dawn, with barefoot volunteers pulling the heavy carriage through narrow streets where the devout waited in hopes of touching the icon, believed to hold miraculous powers. The annual religious parade commemorates the arrival of the wooden statue of Christ from Mexico in the early 1600s.

mitv

Pope Leo XIV closed the final "Holy Door" in St Peter's Basilica in Rome on Tuesday, the day of Epiphany, signaling the end of the 2025 Jubilee year that drew millions of pilgrims to the city.

The ceremony to close the basilica's ornate bronze doors, followed by mass, was the final stage of a Catholic holy year inaugurated by Leo's predecessor, Francis, in December 2024. The year of celebrations is a period of reflection and penance for the world's more than 1.4 billion Catholics. It drew more than 33 million pilgrims to Rome from 185 countries, Vatican officials said Monday.

mitv