articles
Religious people often have ceremonies to mark changes in their life. Hindu rites of passage cover a person’s birth to their death through various traditions and customs.
- Establishment of electric crematorium in Nepal: continuity, changes and challenges.'Traditionally cremations in Nepal are performed with open pyres. These cremations are fluid public events organised and managed by relatives, local communities and ritual specialists. Traditional cremation practices are full of cosmological, eschatological and soteriological significance...'
- The Pyres of Varanasi: Breaking the Cycle of Death and Rebirth'Funeral practices vary worldwide. Of those I’ve witnessed, few are as transparent and raw as the Hindu ritual on the banks of the Ganges River...'
- Bon, Buddhist and Hindu life cycle rituals: A comparison"... Needless to say, everyone experiences birth and death, and marriage is found in almost all societies. But the demarcation of life cycle stages and what connotations to give them differ from one society to another ... "
Clips
Hindu cremation
Images
Hindu Symbols
A lamp is placed by the head of the body.
Pinda or rice balls are placed in the coffin.
Flowers or garlands may also be placed around the dead with the Mala.
Birth Rituals
pictures
Hindu Symbols
Water is sprinkled on the dead to show an act of cleansing the body.
Mala, a necklace made of wooden beads, is put around the dead's neck.