We now cross to the opposite side, the left bank of the Hoogly, to a
_murda ghāt_, a spot where the funeral rites of the Hindūs are
performed. The nearest relative, as is the custom, is stirring up the
body, and pushing it into the flames with a long pole; much oil and
_ghī_ (clarified butter) is poured over the wood, to make it burn
fiercely: in all probability the son of the deceased is performing the
ceremony. We read of the Romans burning their dead, regard it in a
classical light, and think of it without disgust; but when we see the
ceremony really performed, it is very painful: nevertheless, a sort of
absurdity is mixed with it in the mind, as “Stir him up with the long
pole” flashes across the memory. On the conclusion of the ceremony, the
relatives bathe and return to their homes. The _charpāī_, or native bed,
on which the corpse is carried down to the river side, being reckoned
unclean, is generally thrown into the stream, or left on the bank. If a
large quantity of wood and _ghī_ be consumed, we may imagine the
deceased to have been a rich man; the relatives of the very poor
scarcely do more than scorch the body, and throw it into the river,
where it floats swollen and scorched—a horrible sight. The burning of
the body is one of the first ceremonies the Hindūs perform for the help
of the dead in a future state. If this ceremony have not been attended
to, the rites for the repose of the soul cannot be performed.
Perched on the house-top are three vultures, and an _hargīla_, or
adjutant, awaiting the time that they may pounce upon the remains of the
corpse, when it is consigned to the holy river. These insatiate birds of
prey perch upon the abutting walls, waiting their opportunity to
descend; whilst others, repulsed by the attendants of the funeral fires,
fly heavily across the river, passing across the native boats, through
the tattered sails of which you might almost mark their flight. It is a
sickening sight, rendered infinitely more sickening by the abominable
effluvium which issues from the bank of death, in spite of the scented
wood and other odoriferous substances, that are placed upon the funeral
pile of a rich Hindū, and burnt with the body. This custom illustrates
the text, “So shall they burn odours for thee.” (Jeremiah xxxiv. 5.) The
Hindūs believe, that persons for whom funeral rites have not been
performed, wander as ghosts, and find no rest.
An English gentleman travelling _dāk_ is standing on the bank; he has
just crossed over, and is watching the bearers who are getting his
palanquin out of the boat. _Dāk_ journeys are usually performed, during
the hot weather, by night, and the traveller rests at some house during
the day. Of a moonlight night a _dāk_ trip is far from being
disagreeable.