Cremation, Caste, and Cosmogony in Karmic Traditions.

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kept perpetually ablaze for over a thousand years). The fire of Atash Bahram is made up of sixteen fires. Atharvaveda Sacred text of the Indo-Aryans. It derives it name from Atharvan, a term which is usually taken to mean a fire priest in the old Indo-Aryan language. The Atharva Veda was mainly composed by two clans of fire priests known as the Bhrigus (also called Atharvans) and Angirasas. Avasta “Authoritative Utterance”. The oldest, sacred scriptures of Zoroastrianism. The Avestas were collected over several hundred years. The oldest portion, the Gathas, are the hymns written by Zoroaster. Axis mundi Axis which is the centre of the world, combining heaven and hell. Ayurveda A holistic system of medicine from India, uniting micro- and macro-cosmos, or the body and the universe. Baba Spiritual guru, also denoting “father”. Babanandapur Village outside Faridpur, Bangladesh. Bachhaleshwori Temple at Pashupatinath, most known for its sexual engravings. Bagla-Mukhi Incarnation or manifestation of Kali. Bagmati River The holiest river in Nepal, mythological appearing from Shiva’s head at the Pashupatinath linga. Bahun The name of Brahmans in Nepal, the first caste. Baikuntha The heavenly abode of Vishnu. Baishanti Durga ritual during the spring, Faridpur, Bangladesh. Bajondanga Pot-makers’ quarter in Faridpur, Bangladesh. Bakchar Bakchar Angina, the Lila Premises of Jagadbandhu during his post childhood period. Bakchar is located in a rural area at a distance of about 14 km from Sri Angan Ashram in Faridpur. Bandhabpalli “Friends of the universe”, the sweepers’ para in Faridpur, Bangladesh. Bardo The intermediate period in Tibetan Buddhism as described in the Tibetan book of the Dead. The soul is guided through the liminal phase where it might be led astray unless it is supervised by lamas. Bartamande Male initiation rite, initiation into caste and patriline. Benares Benares, Varanasi or Kashi. Kashi literally means “luminous”. One of the jyotirlingas – the linga of light – is residing in Varanasi, and it gives the city the luminosity that reveals untruth and darkness. All the 330 million gods reside in the city and all the tirthas are there. Varanasi lives in a constant stage of purity whereas the rest of the world is decaying. The city stays in Krita Yuga or the Age of Perfection whereas everyone else live in Kali Yuga. Beni Confluence of rivers, also a town in Western Nepal. Bhagaban The supreme Godhead, term used among Hindus in Bangladesh. Bhagavad-Gita The jewel of India’s spiritual wisdom. Spoken by Lord Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead to His intimate disciple Arjuna, the Gita’s seven hundred concise verses provide a definitive guide to the science of self-realisation. Bhairagis An ascetic group in India, but also a group of settled Hindus in Faridpur and Bangladesh. Bhakaris Circular stone spurs built to control floods, but also used for ancestral worship. Bhakti A combination of eroticism and devotionalism. Bhandari Group among the Newars. Members of this group supervise the Pashupatinath temple and assist the priests. Bhasmeswara Satal Temple area at Pashupatinath. Bhattas Priests at Pashupatinath. Bhogola Incarnation of Kali. Bhuvanesvari Incarnation of Kali. Binodpur Ronjit Shah Kali temple in Rajbari District where there is a cemetery of statues from temporary temples. Brahma The first god of the Hindu triad. The creator of the world. The supreme soul of the universe, self-existent, absolute, and eternal, from which all things emanate, and to which all return. Brahmachari Spiritual state achieved by devotional penances and celibacy. Brahmagyani Seer and sage, Rig-Veda. Brahmanal The spot where the waters offered to the Shiva linga in the temple drain into Bagmati. Brahmanism The formalised practice of orthodox Hindu religion. 294
Brammankanda Village where Jagadbandhu spent his youth or childhood period. Brahmans The first of the four castes; the sacerdotal class, the members of which may be, but not necessarily are, priests. Brahmaputra Sacred river in India and Bangladesh. Bona The Mohanta people, former outcaste in Faridpur, Bangladesh. Botthola Pot-makers’ quarter in Faridpur, Bangladesh. BS Bikram Sambat, Nepalese calendar system which is 57 years ahead of the Gregorian calendar. Buddha Siddharta Gautam, founder of Buddhism, born in Lumbini, Nepal. Caste A complex social organisation, see varna. Chaitra Bengali and Nepalese month, March/April. Chandalini A dangerous form of Kali, Tantric Shashan Kali. Chatafar Small duplicates of stupas, made of mud wherein cremated remains are meagred. Chewar Hair cutting ceremony (part of the bartamande initiation rite). Chhetris The name of Ksatriyas in Nepal, the second caste. Chinnamasta Incarnation of Kali. She is also a goddess in Buddhism. Chinvato Peretav The bridge which the soul of the departed crosses to the afterlife in Zoroastrianism. Chitta Square platform used for cremation. Chorten Buddhist memorial, built as copy of stupa. Chu-mig-brgya–rtsa Muktinath, name in Tibetan. Citragupta The judge of the dead. Cosmogony Recreation of the world and cosmos, which most often involves humans and their ritual participation and interaction with the gods. Crore 10 million. Daal baat Meal consisting of rice, vegetables and lentil soup. Dagbatti The lightening ceremony of the cremation. Dakhma Tower of silence where the Zoroastrians dispose of their deceased, used for air-burials. Dakini 1. Devotee of Chinnamasta, begged for food where after Chinnamasta severed her own head and fed her with blood. 2. Primary emblem of the feminine in Tibetan Buddhism. 3. Spirits of women who died in childbirth. Daksina Religious gift which contains the sins of the donor. Gifts made to Brahmans, involving transference of pollution. Damai Tailor, traditionally a low-caste. Dan Religious gift which contains the sins of the donor. Gifts made to Brahmans, involving transference of pollution. Dassain The main religious festival in Nepal nationwide. De architectura 10 volumes handbook in Roman architecture, which covers almost every aspect of architecture including the construction of Greek temples. It is written by Vitruvius, a famous Roman architect, in the 1 st century BCE. The book is based on partly Vitruvius’ own experiences but also on other theoretical works by famous Greek architects, which now are lost. Deva A god, deity. Dharma Religious duty, caste duty. Dhumavati Incarnation of Kali. Dodecahedron Solid figure having 12 faces. Dom General term for low-caste. Dorga mosque Mosque in Faridpur where allegedly Saint Farid is buried. Durga Goddess in Hinduism, wife of Shiva, the “Inaccessible”. Dvapara yuga “Eon of one-half”, name of the third yuga in the series of the four, in which one-half of the dharma or righteousness of Satya yuga remains. Dvijas Twice born, term designating those who have done the bartamande initiation ceremony. Faridpur Town in Bangladesh, located 130 km southeast of Dhaka. Faridpur Thana Town area or district. Fateh Ali Muslim saint, Sufi mystic. Fatima Daughter of Mohammed. Fravashi Divine component of all created things, a protecting spirit in Zoroastrianism. Ganesh Son of Shiva with head of an elephant. Ganga The ultimate tirtha or bridge that crosses the river of samsara, the cycle of birth and death. The river valley is often seen as the cradle for Hindu mythology. The river Ganges is about 2,500 km long and provides water and drainage for some 350-400 295
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Death and Life-Giving Waters Cremat
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Preface Contents List of figures In
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The origin of Pashupatinath and the
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Fig. 5.1 Map of Bangladesh with Far
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In karmic traditions, death and lif
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constructions, it has often been ap
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Part 1: Cremating Death - Creating
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ethically conditioned (fig 1.2). Th
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The pervasiveness of karma linking
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Fig. 1.3. Pashupatinath temple and
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Fig. 1.5. Cremation priest lighting
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Fig. 1.7. Ghat management and servi
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theories of castes as an organisati
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Fig. 1.9. The sons collected the as
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highly polluted that the people wou
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24 Fig. 1.12. Durga Prasad Sapkota
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problematic (Levinson 1982:198), es
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(seeds, food). In life a person bec
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Fig. 2.1. Manikarnika Ghat, Varanas
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the dead, (they shall eat) their fo
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Fig. 2.6. The representation of cas
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degrees of purity and pollution. En
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Fig. 2.8. Caste structure according
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Nevertheless, it is preferable to b
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the sacrifier is the sacrifice. Thu
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partly a process by which the gods
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Chapter 3: Meditation upon death an
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Being a part of a religious elite i
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The dangers of social interaction S
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Third party observing and legitimat
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Fig. 3.4. Tyaginath sitting next to
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57 Top: Fig. 3.6. The grave of Nara
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the Mahabrahmans mostly consume the
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Religion and ritual Studies of deat
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purest in common sense is not alway
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Fig. 4.3. Modes of fleshly incarnat
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e reincarnated into regarding spiri
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Fig. 4.5. Hocart’s and Dumont’s
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impure and still treated as a Brahm
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Part 2: The Sisters Kali and Ganga
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Ganga Brahmaputra • Faridpur Bay
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Fig. 5.4. Ambikapur Shashan Ghat. F
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Fig. 5.6. Channel from the pyre whe
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The head is always supposed to be d
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Hinduism. She is employed as a care
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Only Hindus are cremated at the cem
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According to Hazera, Badol cremated
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Fig. 6.1. Statue of Jagadbandhu. 90
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Fig. 6.2. Rajani receives the bless
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His disciples are like missionaries
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In the Ashram all the expenses are
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Fig. 6.7. Burial in coffin. 98
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Fig. 6.8. Private Kali temple in Ba
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Fig. 6.9. Jagadbandhu temple in Ban
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The importance of the priest in rit
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the rituals, and they have differen
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108
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Fig. 7.1. The mighty Ganga. Fig. 7.
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Fig. 7.3. Tara. Fig. 7.4. Tripur-Su
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Fig. 7.11. Chinnamasta. 114
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immediate divine access and godly g
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Fig. 7.12. Pot-maker in front by th
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Fig. 7.14. The making of Durga. 120
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This image is the most important pa
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Fig. 7.17. Replacement of Shashan K
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Fig. 7.18. The Baishanti Durga puja
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tradition. The Bhaishanti Durga sta
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enlightenment and achieve liberatio
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132
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cloth. Although the Hindus in Farid
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Fig. 8.1. A combined Kali and Saras
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high-caste and priests as religious
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1979:115-118). As seen in Faridpur
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142
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144
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Fig. 9. 1. Map of Nepal. Kaligandak
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The opposite approach is the histor
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Fig. 9.2. Manang and Gangapurna gla
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Fig. 9.5. Bone grinding. 152
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Only 20-25 years ago air-burials we
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was completed by the end of the 18
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As a cultural construct water is al
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These sacrifices rebuild the deceas
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giving mother. A “spirit” is
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Gorakhnath promised the Nepalese th
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“Shiva, the god of eroticism, is
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Fig. 10. 3. Dagbatti - the lighting
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Fig. 10.4. Sexual engravings at the
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priori”, Jung argues; “The repr
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174
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are there in a quite objective sens
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Purana, “those who recite them wi
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forms of colour, 4) water with the
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Fig. 11.2. The spot where humans we
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Fig. 11.4. Bagmati originating from
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186
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Fig. 12.1. Sadhu fasting for Nepali
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If the river could not cleanse itse
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The trust is not directly involved
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Fig. 12.6. The outlet of treated wa
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As an example, once a complete drun
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Fig. 12.10. Bagmati River with clea
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positive or negative feedback upon
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this process happens slowly and pro
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Fig. 13.1. Decaying corpse at Nire
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achievement of a wanted state or co
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while unmarried girls and boys with
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Logic of sin and pollution Cosmogon
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212
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214
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less “true”, unimportant, or in
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From the present to the past, urban
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Dating traditions - the development
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The Muluki Ain aimed to arrange all
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spiritual fold took them to the upp
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choose one’s own path because onl
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esult of a variety of combinations
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practice, common people are ignoran
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procured for the people. The import
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Fig. 15.1. Gundestrup cauldron with
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236
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took place, at some time in history
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Fig. 16.1. Maneckji Seti Agiary in
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stony desert. The polluted body was
Page 256 and 257: Fig. 16.3. Zoroastrian ossuary from
Page 258 and 259: Fig. 16.4. Zarathushtra and fire-te
Page 260 and 261: Fig. 16.6. Inside a Tower of Silenc
Page 262 and 263: Fig. 16.7. Zarathushtra. 250
Page 264 and 265: meaningfully constituted and situat
Page 266 and 267: creative act in world-history - unl
Page 268 and 269: Alexander there offered sacrifices
Page 270 and 271: therefore concentrate on his docume
Page 272 and 273: Marshall suggested that the height
Page 274 and 275: Fig. 17.5. Dharmarajika: plan of re
Page 276 and 277: Fig. 17.6. Buddha from Building L n
Page 278 and 279: Fig. 17.8. The “smaller” Buddha
Page 280 and 281: is always explaining, instructing,
Page 282 and 283: Pakistan Fig. 17.9. Mohenjo-daro an
Page 284 and 285: Fig. 17.10. The Great Bath. From Ma
Page 286 and 287: This is problematic for several rea
Page 288 and 289: As mentioned before, Schutz has mad
Page 290 and 291: 278
Page 292 and 293: of birth and death. The soul is ete
Page 294 and 295: constructions are applied and mater
Page 296 and 297: many possibilities such an approach
Page 298 and 299: follows her husband purifies the th
Page 300 and 301: improper performances of funerals.
Page 302 and 303: 290
Page 304 and 305: 292
Page 308 and 309: Gange Farid million people. Muslim
Page 310 and 311: Manosha The patron saint of serpent
Page 312 and 313: Ratnasambhava The third dhyanibuddh
Page 314 and 315: Tirtha Spiritual ford, crossing pla
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Page 318 and 319: very nice. The last son (or husband
Page 320 and 321: y putting faces on people who other
Page 322 and 323: Hence, I have a feeling that I am o
Page 324 and 325: Fig. 18.3. Ram Mani Gyawali, author
Page 326 and 327: 314
Page 328 and 329: When it again closes then Shiva bec
Page 330 and 331: or the opposite? Is the Aghori capa
Page 332 and 333: A man, after taking a bath in the P
Page 334 and 335: Vishnu said: Obeisance to you, O de
Page 336 and 337: The linga is pure, auspicious and i
Page 338 and 339: 326
Page 340 and 341: Cambridge. Barth, F. 1990. The Guru
Page 342 and 343: Art, Religion & Culture: 184-191. M
Page 344 and 345: Priest. Cambridge University Press.
Page 346 and 347: Insoll, T. 1999b. Introduction. Res
Page 348 and 349: Lahiri, N. 2000. Archaeology and id
Page 350 and 351: Ahmedabad. Mirza, H. K. 2002. Liter
Page 352 and 353: Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
Page 354 and 355: (eds.). Representing Hinduism: 51-8
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