On the ninth, tenth or eleventh day the males of the family have the
front of the head from the crown, and the beard and moustaches, shaved
in token of mourning. The Maha-Brahman who receives the gifts for the
dead is shaved with them. This must be done for an elder relation,
but a man need not be shaved on the death of his wife, sister or
children. The day is the end of mourning and is called Gauri Ganesh,
Gauri being Parvati or the wife of Siva, and Ganesh the god of good
fortune. On the occasion the family give to the Maha-Brahman [68]
a new cot and bedding with a cloth, an umbrella to shield the spirit
from the sun's rays, a copper vessel full of water to quench its
thirst, a brass lamp to guide it on its journey, and if the family
is well-to-do a horse and a cow, All these things are meant to be for
the use of the dead man in the other world. It is also the Brahman's
business to eat a quantity of cooked food, which will form the dead
man's food. It is of great spiritual importance to the dead man's
soul that the Brahman should finish the dish set before him, and if
he does not do so the soul will fare badly. He takes advantage of
this by stopping in the middle of the meal, saying that he has eaten
all he is capable of and cannot go on, so that the relations have
to give him large presents to induce him to finish the food. These
Maha-Brahmans are utterly despised and looked down on by all other
Brahmans and by the community generally, and are sometimes made to
live outside the village. The regular priest, the Malai or Purohit,
can accept no gifts from the time of the death to the end of the period
of mourning. Afterwards he also receives presents in money according
to the means of his clients, which it is supposed will benefit the
dead man's soul in the next world; but no disgrace attaches to the
acceptance of these.