Cremation, Caste, and Cosmogony in Karmic Traditions.

cemetery each day. She did not have any children before
she came to Ambikapur, and according to herself, her
fecundity was due to Shashan Kali’s power and will. She
had been married with Ainil for two years without being
able to become pregnant before they moved to
Ambikapur. After settling down at Ambikapur Shashan
Ghat where she resides next to the cemetery, she
delivered her first son who is now 24 years old (in
2002). Thirteen years ago she had another son. The baby
was born during a night when two corpses, which had to
be cremated, arrived at Shashan ghat. Immediately after
she delivered her son she got back to work and helped
the relatives with their cremations, and for this work she
received 600 takas from each of the families and 700
takas from the Municipality in gratitude.
Dreams and personal visions are important when
explaining religious experiences for both Hindus and
Muslims in Bangla. Hazera has the capability, according
to herself, to feel and see when something is happening
at the Shashan Ghat. One night ten years ago she woke
up around 1 am in the morning and felt that there were
problems at the cemetery. She went to the ghat area and
saw that somebody had broken through the wall of the
rest house. She opened the door with her key, and found
the thief ready to escape with all her equipments for
conducting cremations. He threatened her with a huge
knife, and she feared that if she screamed and called the
attention of the other villagers, he would kill her. But
then, she cast a magic spell and he became paralysed;
she took the knife from him and led him to the iron bars
at the crematorium where she tied him up. The villagers
woke up and she went to the police. Hazera requested
them not to take her cremation implements, but the
police confiscated them as evidences for the trial. When
the thief was carried way, he screamed that he would
come back and kill her in the name of Kali. He got a one
year penalty in jail, and she has never seen him since.
According to Hazera, the theft was a Muslim set-up that,
if it had been successfully, would have proved that she
could not take care of the buildings, and then she would
have been fired. The Muslims in the neighbourhood,
who want to take over the cemetery and use it for
agricultural purposes, have been against and after her for
a long time because she favours Hindus by performing
their obsequies. Once some Muslims tried to bribe
official authorities at the Municipality with 20,000 takas
so they could fire her, but she filed a case in court and
won. If the Muslims are to succeed in their plans
claiming the rights to the cemetery, then the first step is
to get her fired, Hazera claims.
The visions may not only be protective but they can also
be dangerous for Hazera. Once a mad woman who
wanted to pray in the Kali temple came to Shashan Ghat,
but Hazera chased her away. That night Kali appeared in
Hazera’s dream; Kali was furious, and asked Hazera
why she chased away a devotee of hers, and Kali cast a
curse and said that Hazera’s family would be punished.
During the next week one of her sons faced a head
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injury. Then Kali appeared in another dream and told
Hazera to apologise for her misbehaviour. Hazera took a
holy bath in the river and made penance in front of Kali,
and her son recovered. Dreams are a direct means of
communication through which the gods manifest
themselves for their devotees. This incident points out
two aspects. Karma is important for Muslims living in
Bangladesh, and karma may work in the lineage and not
causally. Even the son who was an innocent victim
suffered from his mother’s misconduct. Particularly
Hazera but her family in general are, according to
Hazera, in the hands of Kali. She has nothing but Kali,
and the goddess takes care of her in all aspects of life
and death. The examples of how Kali provides
everything for Hazera are numerous, and include
mundane problems. One day she had no money to buy
food, and she was in despair as to how to provide food
for the family. Kali appeared and saved her again, and
the Goddess of Death provided two corpses that day.
Hazera assisted the mourners while they cremated their
deceased, and she earned 300 takas. In Hazera’s opinion,
this was all the work of Kali, because if nobody had died
that day she would have starved and suffered, but Kali
provided enough dead for her survival – Kali always
takes care of her devotees.
Officially, the municipality employs Hazera as a night
guard and caretaker, but she also supervises cremations
and offers the necessary equipment and arranges the
practical facilities for the descendants who are cremating
their deceased and performing obsequies. She is a
member of the Managing Committee of the Shashan,
which is responsible for those who die without any
relatives. Hazera is not permanently employed at
Ambikapur Shashan Ghat, but hired on a continuous
daily basis of thirty takas per day. Although she is only
appointed as a night guard, she works both days and
nights, and she receives a monthly salary of 900 takas
from the Municipality. This is not enough money to
survive on, and she depends on money donated from the
mourners who cremate their dead. If there is wood and
straw left after cremations, she will receive it and store it
for other cremations, and then later give it to the poor
and needy people who cannot afford to buy all the
necessities which are required for a proper cremation.
One deceased came in a coffin from India, and she got
the coffin and 2000 takas. There is no fixed price for her
assisting labour during cremations, and the relatives may
offer and give what they want according to their social
and economic situation. Normally she receives 50 or 100
takas for a cremation, sometimes 150 takas or even
more, and in addition she charges twenty takas when she
registers the deceased in the Book of Death. This is a
death diary Hazera keeps where she records the number
of dead bodies, and on average there are approximately
fifteen cremations each month. In the book she collects
the name of the dead, the cause of death, names of
relatives, age, caste and jati belongings, and other
relevant information.