Cremation, Caste, and Cosmogony in Karmic Traditions.

her despite his condition, and she returned to her original
appearance although with two arms only.
The making of Kali
The gods are obviously invisible, but still visible. “Not
only are they present in a particular community, but they
may be present if invoked in other communities and
shrines at the same time. They must be in this place, and
that, in the then and the now. They therefore obviously
cannot be present in person; rather, they are there in
essence” (Obeyesekere 1984:51, original emphasis). A
statue aims to solve this problem by combining the
universal essence within a “body” – the statue –
regardless of whether the statue is made of clay, stone,
copper, or other metals. The process of making statues is
therefore a modification and consecration of the divine
in imagery form. From being omnipresent and invisible,
the universal force becomes visible and particular. In
Faridpur the statues are all made of clay with one
exception, and the making of statues is a dangerous
process. The statue makers belong to a branch of potmakers,
and they classify themselves as Sudra. The potmakers
in Faridpur live mainly in Bajondanga, Munzi
Bazaar, and Botthola. The statue is called “takur”,
meaning “priest”, and the name of the pot-maker caste is
Paal, which is identical with Kumar, meaning
“unmarried man”. The statues are made of unburnt clay,
whereas all other ceramic utensils are burnt. The
“skeletons” of the statues are made of bamboo and jute.
If a statue is protected from rain it may “live” for 20-25
years. However, most of the statues are replaced each
year and the old ones are immersed in Ganga.
In Babanandapur (Deura) village the furnace for burning
clay is located behind the temple. The ceramics are dried
in the sun for two days before they are burnt for ten
hours, and then the surface is treated and painted. There
are no special rituals or sacrifices by the furnace before
the clay is burnt, except that the pot-makers pray in the
temple prior to the process. Fire is used as a medium in
the process. The body of Narayan (Vishnu) is perceived
to consist of fire, and therefore the pot-makers pay
homage to Narayan when they burn the ceramics. There
are no statues of Narayan, since he is pure spirit, but in
the temple a round stone represents the god (figs. 7.12-
7.13).
Both men and women are engaged in the ceramics
production making ordinary utensils, but only men make
statues although there are no prohibitions or taboos
regarding the sex of the maker. In Faridpur there are
between 15-20 professional statue makers, and it takes at
least a decade of practice to attain the necessary skills
for being a good statue maker. Skilled statue makers
often take jobs in other villages and towns because there
are few who can make the statues properly according to
all rules and prohibitions. Depending upon how much
ordinary ceramics a statue maker produce each year, he
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can make more than forty statues a year. Although their
knowledge and skills are demanded and appreciated,
their salaries are low.
Making statues is by far the most difficult, and also the
most dangerous, practice among the pot-makers. The
statue maker has spiritual capacities and he is often a
healer. The spiritual power is necessary in the process of
making the statues. The spirit of the god or goddess will
take part in his body when he makes the statue. The
divinity determines how the statue will appear, but it is
made through the healer’s heart, head, and hands.
During the process the healer and the god or goddess
have an intimate spiritual relation. While making Kali
statues they believe that Kali has blessed the statue
maker. Without the blessing from the goddess it is
impossible to make the statues, and not everyone is
enlightened or capable of receiving such a gift from the
goddess, and therefore the statue maker should possess
spiritual powers. The statue maker starts the process by
drawing a picture of the goddess in his heart before his
hands fulfil the image. Hence, without the blessing from
the goddess it is impossible to make this devotional
picture of Kali, and consequently impossible to create a
divine image. Everything takes form by his hands, but
the goddess’ invisible hands enter the statue maker and
she directs the process. Sometimes Brahman priests
make requests when they order a statue of a certain god
or goddess, but in the end it is the statue maker who
decides how the statue will appear through the divine
directives.
As indicated, the Shashan Kali statue is one of the most
dangerous statues to build, and in Faridpur there is only
one statue maker who has the knowledge and skills for
this spiritual interaction with Kali. There are two ways
of making the Shashan Kali statue depending upon
whether the devotees will follow the Tantric or the
Vaishnava path of worship. The Tantric Shashan Kali
rituals celebrate the violent and ferocious Kali whereas
the Vaishnava Shashan Kali rituals celebrate the
peaceful Kali. The Tantric Shashan Kali is another form
of Kali called Chandalini, an uttermost dangerous and
destructive form of Kali.
If the Shashan Kali statue is built according to either of
the rules of devotional paths, then the devotees have to
observe the rituals according to the prescribed path of
worship. Thus, the devotees order the statues made in
accordance with the rules they want to observe, or more
correctly, if a temple has been initiated to either of the
paths, the devotees have to follow the established
tradition. The Tantric rituals are more difficult and
dangerous to observe than the Vaishnava path, and
therefore, the latter path is the most common.
If the statue is built according to Tantric rules, then the
statue maker has to use only clay from the cemetery. He
will mix the clay with alcohol instead of water and mix
the clay with hashish (ganja) and ashes from cremations.