The Batu caves are located about 7 miles from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. The main attraction in these caves other than the caves itself are the Hindu temples dedicated to various Indian gods, mainly Lord Kartikeya, who as per Hindu mythology is the son of the Lord Shiva. Lord Kartikeya is also known as Lord Subramanyam or Lord Murugan. These caves, formed of limestone have a lot of stalactite formations. They were discovered only a hundred years ago. One must climb 272 steps in order to reach these caves. There are three main caves and numerous other smaller caves. Although there is no knowledge as to how old these caves are, legend has it that people wishing to gain spiritual and mystical powers some 1500 years ago used these caves. At these very caves the Thaipusam festival is held every year and almost 800000 devotees gather here at this very temple to take part in the festivities. This happens to be the largest gathering of Hindu devotees in Malaysia. Malaysia has a lot of South Indians and this festival of Thaipusam is primarily a South Indian tradition. The main god of worship during this festival is Lord Subramanyam. This festival falls in the tenth month of the Hindu calendar (sometime in January or February as per the English calendar). As I have not experienced the festivities myself I will not elaborate on the actual proceedings of the festival for which the Batu caves are so famous.