The dead are cremated as a rule, and the ashes are thrown into
a sacred river or any stream. The bodies of young children and of
persons dying from epidemic disease are buried. The period of mourning
must be for an odd number of days. On the third day a leaf plate with
cooked food is placed on the ground where the body was burnt, and on
some subsequent day a feast is given to the caste. Rich Banias will
hire people to mourn. Widows and young girls are usually employed,
and these come and sit before the house for an hour in the morning
and sometimes also in the evening, and covering their heads with
their cloths, beat their breasts and make lamentations. Rich men
may hire as many as ten mourners for a period of one, two or three
months. The Marwaris, when a girl is born, break an earthen pot to
show that they have had a misfortune; but when a boy is born they
beat a brass plate in token of their joy.