12544038 - Hindu Cremation Grounds, burning the dead, Vic...

Victorian Stereoview card from circa 1900 India through the stereoscope.1903 historic social history images. Hindu Cremation Grounds- Burning the dead-Bombay-India. We are near the harbor-side in the western district of the city and not far from the Parsi grounds where disciples of Zoroaster leave their dead in â€˜Towers of Silenceâ€ to be devoured by vultures. Abhorrent as are that Parsi custom and this Hindu ceremony of cremation, when first considered from the traditional western standpoint, there are evident sanitary advantages secured thereby, in this land of disease and decay. The burning of a Hindu's body must be done very soon after his death and at one of certain prescribed places, with the help of certain materials in the way of fuel, oil and so forth, which are supplied for a fee by specially appointed persons. The body, wrapped in white cloth and often wound with flower garlands, is borne on a litter to this burning ground, the dead manâ€™s friends following, and, if they can afford it, bearing sandalwood, spices and other ceremonial materials. A pile of wood sufficient to consume the corpse is furnished by the person in charge; the body is laid thereon, oil is poured over it and fragrant substances are sprinkled over it in quantities proportionate to the means of the family; then a male relative takes a flaming brand and lights the pyre. Great quantities of jewelry are often left on bodies brought here for cremation, and the recovery of the precious metal from the ashes constitutes a considerable source of revenue for the officials in charge. The actual labor of sifting out such treasure, like the labor of building the pyres, is performed by men of low caste, cordially despised by those of higher degree. The suicide of Hindu widows by burning on a husbandâ€™s funeral pyre has for many years been forbidden by British law much to the regret of devoutly orthodox Brahmans.

License: Rights Managed

Credit: © John Short / Design Pics

Image Reference: 12544038

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