THE BUSINESS OF DEATH
Last Sunday, a lot of my childhood memories were turned into a pile of ashes. The lady who played the starring role in every one of my summer vacation memories was no more.
I had always believed that rituals were ways to help us deal with life itself, and have always felt that those that dealt with death were no different. That they were there to help us deal with the trauma, come to terms with reality and to provide some kind of closure.
Cremation over, it was time to discuss the ceremonies (“beli”)that usually follow in a week’s time or so. That was when the shocks began. The “Kanniyan” or the astrologer, informed us that the date my grandmother passed away was “unlucky”. That we were soon to hear of 4 other deaths; within the family, friends or neighbors. He neatly covered all bases by clarifying that the deaths could be those of pets too.
Next this middleman comes by with a gargantuan list for the puja. It had enough items on it to ensure that the priest’s family did not have to visit the grocers at least for the next three months. The middleman was magnanimous enough to state that we only had to arrange for the money and that he would get all the items on the list. Moreover, we had to ensure that all of these items were delivered to the priest’s home!! And the cost of all the items on the list?...a cool Rs 25,000. The cost of the “dakshina” for the priest and his apprentices and that of the feast that would need to be served to them as well as to the other invitees were not included in this figure. On being told that the cost was way beyond what we could comfortably afford, we were told that we always had the option of borrowing!!! But the quality of the puja (read the quantity of the items needed) could not be compromised.
All of this brought to mind a story I had read a long time ago. My mom, who teaches the language, in her zeal to introduce her only daughter to the richness of Hindi literature, had insisted I read a few works of Premchand. This one, if I remember correctly, was titled “Kajri Billi” (The Black Cat). The story was about this rich zamindar’s daughter-in-law, who inadvertently “kills” this thieving black cat that sneaks into her kitchen, by throwing something at it. The whole household is soon in an uproar and the family priest is summoned. He decrees that a gold figure of the cat needs to be made and worshipped along with the requisite rituals and pujas to lessen the impact of this dire act. The “dakshina” would obviously include the gold figure of the cat, along with money, new clothes as well as various items listed as required for the puja. The superstitious zamindar’s family agrees to this and is soon busy with readying the items needed. The happy priest goes home to his wife and declares that she is soon to be treated like a princess; new clothes, new jewellery and enough groceries to prepare all the delicacies she was always hankering after.
He returns to the zamindar’s and readies for the puja. At this point, the maid rushes in with the news, “The cat just got up and ran away.” Apparently, the daughter –in-law had merely stunned the cat!!
Ma, I know I was skeptical when I first read this, wondering how people could be so gullible. But then you were right, as usual. People do tend to be gullible when they are grief-stricken, and yes, Premchand’s stories are based on real life!!!
I had always believed that rituals were ways to help us deal with life itself, and have always felt that those that dealt with death were no different. That they were there to help us deal with the trauma, come to terms with reality and to provide some kind of closure.
Cremation over, it was time to discuss the ceremonies (“beli”)that usually follow in a week’s time or so. That was when the shocks began. The “Kanniyan” or the astrologer, informed us that the date my grandmother passed away was “unlucky”. That we were soon to hear of 4 other deaths; within the family, friends or neighbors. He neatly covered all bases by clarifying that the deaths could be those of pets too.
Next this middleman comes by with a gargantuan list for the puja. It had enough items on it to ensure that the priest’s family did not have to visit the grocers at least for the next three months. The middleman was magnanimous enough to state that we only had to arrange for the money and that he would get all the items on the list. Moreover, we had to ensure that all of these items were delivered to the priest’s home!! And the cost of all the items on the list?...a cool Rs 25,000. The cost of the “dakshina” for the priest and his apprentices and that of the feast that would need to be served to them as well as to the other invitees were not included in this figure. On being told that the cost was way beyond what we could comfortably afford, we were told that we always had the option of borrowing!!! But the quality of the puja (read the quantity of the items needed) could not be compromised.
All of this brought to mind a story I had read a long time ago. My mom, who teaches the language, in her zeal to introduce her only daughter to the richness of Hindi literature, had insisted I read a few works of Premchand. This one, if I remember correctly, was titled “Kajri Billi” (The Black Cat). The story was about this rich zamindar’s daughter-in-law, who inadvertently “kills” this thieving black cat that sneaks into her kitchen, by throwing something at it. The whole household is soon in an uproar and the family priest is summoned. He decrees that a gold figure of the cat needs to be made and worshipped along with the requisite rituals and pujas to lessen the impact of this dire act. The “dakshina” would obviously include the gold figure of the cat, along with money, new clothes as well as various items listed as required for the puja. The superstitious zamindar’s family agrees to this and is soon busy with readying the items needed. The happy priest goes home to his wife and declares that she is soon to be treated like a princess; new clothes, new jewellery and enough groceries to prepare all the delicacies she was always hankering after.
He returns to the zamindar’s and readies for the puja. At this point, the maid rushes in with the news, “The cat just got up and ran away.” Apparently, the daughter –in-law had merely stunned the cat!!
Ma, I know I was skeptical when I first read this, wondering how people could be so gullible. But then you were right, as usual. People do tend to be gullible when they are grief-stricken, and yes, Premchand’s stories are based on real life!!!
posted by newatthis at 5:18 AM
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