Cremation on the shore of the river

I haven’t done all the research to back my story here so… it’s meant to be entertaining even if not 100% accurate.




After death occurs, the deceased is washed and covered with a cloth from head to toe usually (although we have seen some faces of dead people in the streets!). The skull also has to be cracked open to let the soul leave the body. The stretcher on which the deceased is layed, is covered with pieces of colourful cloths that are shinier and look more festive. Numerous flower guarlands are also placed on the body followings prayers and blessings. The body is then carried to the Holy river, The Ganges. This process is supposed to take less than 24 hours.

The bed is made with branches, which is ideally Sandalwood, but since it is the most expensive one, most people only sprinkle sandalwood on the body. Then the cloths are removed from the body and only the sheet stays. The water from the river is then used to wash and bless the corpse before it is place onto the pier. The amount of wood used to make the pier is always different since the cost goes by weight. Of course, there is a minimum required to allow a body to burn completely and they say that it is an art to determine the correct amount. No accelerant is used to help the burning but they do use natural products like coal. They also poored a white liquid on the deceased which looked like cream but i did not get confirmation on that.

There is a person that is going to start the fire. It is always a man, usually the oldest son. He must have his head shaved to the skin, keeping just a bit on the top there, if he is Hindu. He also was in the Ganges before getting dressed in white. He will get the flame into a sacred fire from a temple and carry the flame to the woodenbed, no matches here. A body takes about three hours to burn. The ashes will be collected and thrown into the Ganges or the ocean thirteen days after the death, time needed for the family members to be purified.



The women are usually more expressive after death and can not be present when the burning take place. For the soul to leave the body and rise, there should not be any crying going on. Reincarnation is then possible and the pursuit of a better Karma is essential in their religion.



Five types of persons are not burned. Kids, which did not have time to gather enough wisdom to get a better Karma in another life; pregnant women, they are carrying a baby so same reasons than above; Sadhus, they are saints that have already a good Karma, lepers, that are blessed by certain gods, people who die from a cobra bite, it is a sacred animal.