Lines of Christians waited across the world for ashes, in a shape of the cross, to mark their foreheads.
The practice, which takes place on the holy day of Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, is an outward symbol intended to remind believers of man’s mortality.
As ashes are applied in the shape of a cross, admonitions to “remember man that thou art dust and unto dust thou shalt return” and “turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel” are uttered.
Lent marks the 40-day period (Sundays are not included in the count) prior to Easter, another holy day in which most Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead to redeem men from their sins, a cornerstone of Christianity.
Common observances of the period include fasting, abstaining from meat and exercising spiritual disciplines.
