PREMATURE BURIAL AND CREMATION IN INDIA.

The following are some of the facts and experiences which were brought to the author’s notice during a visit to India in the early part of 1896.

THE CALCUTTA BURNING GHAT.

On February 9, 1896, I visited the Burning Ghat on the banks of the Ganges, Calcutta, where twenty bodies are reduced to ashes by fire daily. The corpse of an aged Hindu woman had just been brought in on my arrival, death, we were told, having occurred but an hour before. The deputy registrar asked the nearest relative a few questions as to the age, caste, next of kin, cause of death, which were duly recorded in a book kept for that purpose, and, the charges having been paid, the body, which was as supple as in life (and, except for want of volition, bore no visible marks of death), was placed upon the logs, which were alternately crossed over each other, other logs being placed on the top of the body, with straw underneath. The family being poor in this case, no expensive spiced oils, ghee, or sandal wood were used. The pyre having been sprinkled with water from the sacred river, the nearest male relative took a wisp of lighted straw and ran seven times round it, shouting “Ram, Ram, sach hai” (the god Ram is true and great indeed). He then applied the torch, which in a few seconds reached the body, while a Hindu priest recited verses from the Vedas. The process of burning occupied about four hours. Two other bodies, one an adult, and the other a child, were nearly burnt to ashes during my visit. It appears that in India, when the body is motionless, and assumes a death-like appearance, as in trance or catalepsy, no attempt is ever made at resuscitation, no matter how suddenly or unexpectedly the supposed death may occur, nor is there any proper method of examination for the purpose of death certification. Amongst the Hindus death is not considered an evil, but is the gate leading to a better and happier world. Many Hindus when ill are carried by their friends to the banks of the sacred Ganges, where they meet death with much hope, and without fear.

At the General Hospital, Colombo, I was told by Dr. Van Lagenberg that there was absolutely no protection against premature burials for persons subject to trance, as, although according to the law medical certification was obligatory, medical examination was not; the doctor taking the word of the friends as to the fact of death, and certifying accordingly. Early burial (about six hours after death) was the rule. The Mother Superior to the staff of nurses mentioned the case of the venerable Father Vestarani, an aged Catholic priest of Colombo, who was subject to attacks of epilepsy: these were followed by apparent death, and he had several narrow escapes from premature burial. This case was also known to my friend, Mr. Peter de Abrew, of Colombo, and others. The house surgeon, Dr. H. M. Fernando, said that amongst the Moslems burial followed apparent death very quickly, sometimes in an hour.

From Mr. Vira Raghava Chri, of Madras, manager of the Hindu, I learned that the Brahmins always burn the dead soon after death occurs. The relatives, if they reside within easy reach, are sent for. The body is washed in cold water, and after two or three hours the religious service begins, which is performed by the priests, and consists of citations from the Vedas having reference to the departure of the soul from the body, and to the lessons the solemn event teaches. These ceremonies generally last for two or three hours, after which the body is taken to be burned. In answer to my inquiries as to what would happen if within that time no sign of decomposition was exhibited, Mr. Chri informed me that under no circumstances would they wait for more than six hours before the body was taken to be burned. He had heard of cases of persons declared to be dead coming to life while being carried to the funeral pyre, when they were restored to and welcomed by their friends. Cases were also known of the corpse sitting up amidst the flames, and being beaten down by those in charge of the funeral. They were believed to be the victims of premature cremation. He thought, however, that such cases were rare amongst his co-religionists.

Mr. Mohan Chunder Roy, M.B., of Benares, said that it was a very difficult matter, even for a medical practitioner, to distinguish the living from the dead,DIFFICULTY OF DIAGNOSIS. and, where there were no signs of putrefaction, it was his custom to advise the relatives to wait before burial, or before sending the body to the burning ghat, which they were very reluctant to do. When apparent revivals to consciousness occurred on the pyre, the superstitious people believed that it was due to the presence of evil spirits, and the attempt to escape is frustrated by cremators in charge of the burning ghat. This barbarous custom has been repeatedly affirmed to me by intelligent natives as a matter of common notoriety.

One reason why Hindus are hurried to the cremation ground so quickly, and without waiting to see whether the case is one of trance or suspended animation, is that the relatives are not allowed either to eat or drink while the body remains in the house. If a person touches any article in the house of mourning, that article must be washed and purified. After the cremation all the relatives purify themselves by bathing before they are allowed to eat or drink.

Mr. Durga Prasad, editor of the Harbinger, Lahore, writes, February 29, 1896:—“I recollect, when about twelve years old, my grandmother, who was held in great esteem for her piety and experience, told me that she was once declared to be dead, and was therefore carried to our crematorium, or burning-place; but when about to be burnt she came back to life.”

Mr. Joseph, assistant secretary at the Public Library and Museum, Colombo, told the author that his father, owing to weakness of the heart, was subject to frequent attacks of trance-like insensibility. They passed away by simple treatment in a few hours, but were sometimes quite alarming. He was afraid, owing to the superstitious fear of death among the ignorant classes in Ceylon, and the terror which keeping a corpse, or a person in a state of catalepsy, where volition had ceased, excited, that many were buried or burned alive, as it was the custom, particularly amongst the Mahomedans, to carry the body away a few hours after death. Signs of decomposition quickly appeared in a tropical climate, but this unequivocal mode of verifying death was not often waited for by Moslems.

SRI SUMANGALA ON SINHALESE BURIALS IN CEYLON.

Sri Sumangala, the venerable High Priest of the Buddhists of Ceylon, and Principal of the College for Buddhist Priests, at an interview the author had with him in January, 1895, stated that among the Sinhalese the chances of burial or cremation of the apparently dead are not frequent.BURIAL IN CEYLON. Their customs are such that a corpse is seldom or never removed for burial or cremation before the expiry of twenty-four hours after death is said to have taken place. During that time climatic influence renders signs of decomposition and putrefaction apparent.

Only one case came under the observation of the venerable theologian, which was that of a person bitten by a cobra. The man apparently succumbed, but a native specialist, having arrived at the cemetery just before the burial, examined the case, and said that life was not extinct, and saved the man from a premature grave.

The following is from the British Medical Journal, April 26, 1884, p. 844:—

In a communication to the author from Mr. Nasarvariji F. Billimoria, dated March 14, 1896, the writer says that, where cases of premature burning have occurred in India, the relatives are unwilling to have the facts published, and shrink from making them known. Moreover, when members of a family once declared dead have been rejected by their friends in the land of shadows, and have returned to this life, they are believed to bring misfortune with them, and discredit is attached to the families in consequence. Mr. Billimoria says the following cases can be relied upon as authentic:—

“In the year 18—, in the town of B——, a Marwari was taken as dead and carried to the cremation ground. Unfortunately, at that time a superstition was prevalent among all classes of Indians that, if a dead one is brought back to his or her house, a plague would break out in the town. When, therefore, the Marwari survived, instead of bringing him back to the house, or even allowing him to roam elsewhere, he was killed, it is said, by a hatchet, which they were in the habit of carrying with them to break the fuel for the funeral pyre. This had happened in the old Gaekwari days when Governments did not interfere in the superstitious customs of the people.”

Fortunately, however, those days are gone, and with them the old superstitions. Some time ago a fisherwoman, after taking a liberal dose of alcoholic drink and opium, was found (apparently) dead by her relatives—low-caste Hindus. No time is lost among the Hindus, high or low caste, to remove the body to the cremation ground after a man is found dead.

The Bombay Guardian, January 11, 1896, under the head of “The Week’s News,” announced that—

“A Brahmin went to Poona to attend the National Congress. He was laid up with fever, became dangerously ill, and fell into a trance. His friends, thinking him dead, made the necessary arrangements for the funeral. They took the supposed dead man to the river to be burned, but, just as the funeral procession arrived near the Shane temple, his head and hands were seen moving. The cloth having been removed from his face, he opened his eyes and tried to speak. He was taken home.”

This case was reported also in the Times of India.

The subject of hasty and premature burials in India might with much profit be introduced at the National Congress. The author believes that thousands of people are annually buried and burned in a state of suspended animation—particularly in places where cholera, small-pox, and other devastating plagues prevail. It is usual, both amongst the Parsees and the Hindus, to begin preparations for the religious ceremonies when the case is considered hopeless.

Dr. Roger S. Chew, of Calcutta, who for some years occupied the position of army surgeon in India, writes to me:—“Though there is every risk of live interment with those classes who bury their dead, this is a risk (save in cases of epidemic or battlefield) the British soldier never runs in India, where the military law requires that a post-mortem examination, not earlier than twelve hours after decease, must be held on every soldier who dies from any cause except a highly contagious or infectious disease.” In the present unsatisfactory state of the law might not this safeguard be generally adopted?

THE TOWERS OF SILENCE, BOMBAY.

On Sunday, March 15, 1896, my daughter and I were accompanied to the Towers of Silence, situated on the highest part of Malabar Hill, Bombay, by Mr. Phiroze C. Sethna, a highly accomplished Parsee merchant, to whom we were indebted for many acts of kindness during our sojourn in the city. The position is one of rare beauty, commanding as it does charming panoramic views of Bombay and the surrounding neighbourhood, while immediately below are extensive cocoa and other tropical plantations. At the entrance to the towers is a notice-board in English, stating that none but Parsees are admitted. We passed under the porch into the sacred enclosure, and found ourselves in the midst of a lovely garden planted with choice shrubs and trees, and were each presented by the gardener with bouquets of freshly-cut flowers.

The towers are five in number, the smallest having been erected in 1669, all modelled after the same pattern, and are about twenty-five feet high. Inside is a circular platform about three hundred feet in circumference paved with large slabs, and divided into rows of shallow open receptacles in which the bodies are placed. There are three sections—for males, females, and children. We noticed a number of vultures sitting on the adjacent trees, and were informed that, when a funeral is on its way, large numbers congregate upon the coping of the tower, ready to seize the body and devour it the moment it is deposited by the corpse-bearers on the slabs, after the conclusion of the funeral ceremonies. In an hour or less the corpse is completely stripped of its flesh, when the bones are thrown into a well. From a sanitary point of view, the plan is preferable to burying or to cremation, which last, as it is carried out in India, is a slow and tedious process. Vultures have never been known to attack children, or even babies left by their mothers tied for safety to a branch of a tree, and will not, it is said, attack a person only apparently dead, as in a trance or coma.

Another custom amongst the Parsees in the treatment of their dead is to bring a dog to the corpse before it is removed from the house, and another dog on its arrival at the Tower of Silence. This ceremony is known as the Sagdeed. In a pamphlet on the “Funeral Ceremonies of the Parsees,” by Ervad Jivanji Jamshedje Mody, B.A., a learned priest of the Parsee cult, with whom the author had the pleasure of an interview, the explanation is that, according to the ancient belief, the spotted dog can discriminate between the really and the apparently dead. Dr. Franz Hartmann and other writers appear also to be of the opinion, which the author considers highly probable, that a dog knows whether his master is really dead or only in a trance; but that a strange dog would be able to discriminate and act as a sentinel to prevent a living person being mistaken for a dead one, is highly improbable.

Having heard of several cases of persons taken to the Towers of Silence who recovered consciousness after being laid within the enclosure, I asked Mr. Jivanji Mody what would happen in such a case, and what means of escape there would be? Mr. Mody replied that within the tower there is a chain hanging from the coping to the floor, by which a person could draw himself up to the top of the structure, and he would then be seen and rescued. In a neatly-constructed model of these towers at the museum, Victoria Gardens, Bombay, no chain is visible. The subject of apparent death, or suspended animation, and how to prevent premature burial, premature cremation, and premature exposure in the Towers of Silence, is beginning to excite interest in some parts of India. Mr. Ardeshar Nowroji, Fort Bombay, student of Zoroastrian literature, is to read a paper on the subject before the Debating Society at Elphinstone College. Mr. Soabjee Dhunjeebhoy Wadia is also studying literature bearing on the same topic.

Mr. Dadabhoy Nusserwanje, a Bombay Parsee and merchant, residing at Colombo, Ceylon, informed the author, January 28, 1896, that he knew of two cases where his co-religionists had been declared dead, and the bodies prepared for burial (the preparation including the long religious service as prescribed by their formulas), who were only in a trance. This was proved by their having come back to life when placed in the Towers of Silence in Bombay. It appears that any persons officially and religiously given over for dead were formerly not allowed to be restored to their relatives, or to the society to which they belonged, as they were supposed to carry with them, from their dead associates, liability to plagues or ill luck, and they are consequently obliged to migrate to distant parts of the country. My informant said that this superstition was so deeply rooted in the minds of the Parsee people that he did not think a reform was possible.

Cases of persons in a trance, mistaken for dead, are by no means uncommon, as would appear from the following communication from Mr. Nasarvariji F. Billimoria, a Parsee of Bombay, addressed to Dr. Franz Hartmann, and not previously published:-

“The funeral ceremonies among the Parsees provide that, after the signs of death are manifest, the body be washed with warm water, and laid on a clean sheet; two persons hold the hands of the dead person, joining themselves by a paivand of tape. The priests recite certain prayers, after which the body is laid on ground set apart for the purpose in the house. Here it lies for several hours, during which time priests recite alternately certain prayers, while a fire is kept alive with fragrant combustibles near the body. The NasasÂlÂrs, or corpse-bearers, arrive at the appointed time, when the fire is taken away, and other manthr or prayers, which occupy an hour or so, are recited by two priests conjointly, gazing first on the iron bier, and then on the face of the body. A procession is then formed, and the body is carried by the NasasÂlÂrs only, the others walking in pairs, joining themselves by holding a handkerchief in their hands, several yards distant from the body. The Towers of Silence are removed from the habitations of mankind, sometimes, miles distant, where, after the arrival of the funeral procession, the last obeisance is performed, and the body is carried into the tower, which is called DukhmÂh, the mourners, except the NasasÂlÂrs, remaining outside. The procession returns after further prayers. The towers are entirely open from above to allow ample sunlight, and to allow the carrion-birds access to the dead.

“From the foregoing it would appear that, with regard to the disposal of the dead, the Parsee system offers advantages, in respect of the revival of the supposed dead persons, over the European system of burial. After real or supposed death, a fire is kept burning near the body, the heat of which would indirectly assist in resuscitating those in a state of suspended animation.

“If a man dies in the afternoon, his body is not carried to the towers till next day, and in that case the fire is kept alive the whole night near the body, two priests alternately reciting manthrÂs. Some time is thus allowed to intervene between the supposed death and the disposal of the body in the Towers of Silence. There, too, the body is not laid without Zoroastrian ceremony. But in the system of disposal itself we see another protection, in that the carrion-birds do not touch the body unless they instinctively find evidence of putrefaction. It is a fact that in not a few cases persons have escaped from the dismal and terrible fate of being laid alive in the Towers of Silence. The system of disposal in the tower may appear to non-Zoroastrians repulsive; but neither the system of cremation nor burial will give us back those whom they have once devoured. That the Parsees do not allow those who have returned from the Towers of Silence to intermingle among them is another question. This too, however, has attracted the attention of this small community; and I hear that there is a standing order issued from the trustees of the Parsee Panchayet at Bombay to the NasasÂlÂrs (the corpse-bearers) to the effect that they would be rewarded if they would give information or bring back any body which had been revived after it had been carried to the Towers of Silence.”

The Parsee custom of using the dog is suggestive. There are numerous cases on record where a dog, following his master to the grave as one of the mourners, has refused to leave the grave; and these have been quoted as a proof of the undying love of the master’s canine friend. May it not be that dogs are gifted, as believed by the Parsees, with another sense denied to most men—the faculty of discerning between real and apparent death? A medical correspondent relates the following:—

Also the following:—