On the 14th day of the Hindu festival of Yadnya Kasada, the Tenggerese people throw fruit, vegetables and live animals into the crater of Mount Bromo as offerings to the mountain gods.
However, not all of their offerings reach the gods. Locals from a nearby village in Probolinggo, East Java, Indonesia, wait inside the crater with nets and try to catch the food thrown by the Hindu worshippers.
A tribesman holds a goat before throwing it into the crater of Mount Bromo as an offeringUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesA bird tries to fly after being thrown into the crater of Mount Bromo by Hindu worshippersUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesVillagers with nets prepare to catch offerings thrown by Hindu worshippers into the crater of Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty Images
The origin of the festival lies in the 15th century when a princess named Roro Anteng started the principality of Tengger with her husband Joko Seger, and the childless couple asked the mountain gods for help in bearing children.
The legend says the gods granted them 24 children, on the provision that the 25th must be tossed into the volcano in sacrifice. The 25th child, Kesuma, was finally sacrificed in this way after initial refusal, and the tradition of throwing sacrifices into the caldera to appease the mountain gods continues today.
A village is seen at the foot of Mount Bromo in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in Probolinggo, Java, Indonesia Ulet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesTwo men lead a goat across the Sea of Sand towards the crater of Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesPeople carry offerings of fruit and vegetables up towards the crater of Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesA villager crossing the Sea of Sands pauses to take in the viewUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesClouds blanket the valley below as Tenggerese worshippers pray to their ancestors at the crater of Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesTenggerese worshippers trek across the Sea of Sand to give their offerings to Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesVillagers use nets to try to catch offerings thrown by Hindu worshippersUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesEleven-year-old Feri holds a net as he and other villagers wait to catch offerings thrown by Hindu worshippersUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesA villager tries to catch a chicken thrown by Hindu worshippers into the crater of Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty Images
The Tenggerese or Tengger people live in villages in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in east-central Java. They are generally Hindu, but they also worship Ida Sang Hyang Widi Wasa, which translates as "Big Almighty Lord", as well as several Buddhist deities.
The main Tenggerese temple is Pura Luhur Poten on the Sea of Sands at the foot of Mount Bromo. They gather here before setting off up Mount Bromo with their offerings for the mountain gods.
Tenggerese worshippers prepare at Poten Temple before going to Mount BromoUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesTenggerese worshippers gather around a fire at Poten Temple before heading to the mountainUlet Ifansasti/Getty ImagesWorshippers consult with a shaman at Widodaren Cave before they set off up the mountainUlet Ifansasti/Getty Images
