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The
Pyre is prepared at the cremation ground. The corpse is placed on
it and ghee is poured in the mouth, eyes and nose. The left-over, dough-balls are
given in offering, after which the eldest son sets fire to it, starting at the
head and then going round clock-wise.
Some Hindus perform havan
before igniting the pyre. Sikhs recite hymns from
the Holy Book, read Sohila, and offer prayers for the peace of the departed
soul. When the body is almost burnt, the ritual Kapal Kirya (breaking the skull)
is performed. The chief mourner, generally the eldest son, breaks the skull with
a hard pole, the idea behind the ritual being that the skull burns up
completely.
On
their way back, mourners bathe at a pond or well, wash all their clothes and
perform another ritual in which each one sits on the ground,
bends forward, takes a blade of grass in his hands and after the priest has
chanted a verse, breaks it into two and throws it back behind his head, thus
severing all worldly relations with the dead man. Sikhs generally go to
Gurudwara
before going home and offer prayers for the benefit of the departed soul
and distribute the traditional pudding, Karah Parshad. After this the funeral
party disperses. In earlier times, the mourners invariably stayed on near the
pyre till sunset. Small children are generally buried and not cremated, but the Sikhs cremate
their children also.
Till decades ago, if a person died of
small-pox or of an epidemic, his body was
immersed in water and not cremated. It was believed that epidemics were caused
by the anger of some gods or goddesses and a person who caught any of those
diseases was actually possessed of those gods and goddesses. Burning such a body
would mean torturing the god or goddess along with it, which would further
offend the already angered deity.
On the fourth day after the death, but not on a
Wednesday, the rite of Phul
Chunana (picking the charred bones) is performed. In the evening the Chautha
ceremony is performed, a condolence meeting at which all the relatives and
friends assemble. If the Chautha falls on a Wednesday, it is performed a day
earlier. While picking the bones, diluted milk is put in one vessel and all bones
which are picked up are washed in it and then put either into a bag or an
earthen vessel. The ashes are also collected and immersed in a stream, if there
is one nearby. But the bones are taken to Hardwar and immersed in the Ganga.
Some Sikhs take these bones to Kiratpur and immerse them in the river Beas.
Kirya, the chief ceremony after death, is performed on different days by
different clans. Some perform it on the 10th or 11th day, some on the 13th, and
some on the 16th day after death. In rare cases, it is even performed on the 21st
day. The Jats of the Punjab perform it on the 10th day and call it Dasahi.
Brahmins perform it on the 11th day. Other Hindus perform it on the 13th day and
call it Tehravan. On this day all relatives and friends assemble in the
afternoon in condolence. Some Hindus perform Havan on this day. Sikhs have a
non-stop reading of the Adi Granth, Kirtan and prayers. The eldest son of the
deceased is ceremonially installed as the head of the household in place of his
father and as a token he wears the turban usually given for this
occasion by his father-in-law. If the wife of the deceased is alive, the Nain
comes and ties her hair after which all relatives according to the nearness of
their relationship give her some money. This is called Sarvanna. This is a
sort of financial aid to the widow. When a woman dies, her parents bring the
turban which her husband wears on this day. If however, he intends to remarry,
he does not wear this turban.
All friends and relatives are served food on this day. If a man dies of old
age, his death is celebrated and halwa and puri are served to all mourners
assembled. Utensils, clothes, beddings and fruits are given in charity in the
name of the deceased. After one year the death anniversary is performed, this is known as
Varina.
Hindus feed Brahmins on this day. Sikhs have a non-stop reading of the
Adi-Granth, Kirtan and arrange to serve food to the Panj Piyaras.
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