The dead may be either buried or burnt, as convenient, and mourning
is always observed for three days. Before the corpse is removed
a new earthen pot filled with rice is placed on the bier. The
chief mourner raises it, and addressing the deceased informs him
that after a certain period he will be united to the sainted dead,
and until that day his spirit should abide happily in the pot and
not trouble his family. The mouth of the pot is then covered, and
after the funeral the mourners take it home with them. When the day
appointed for the final ceremony has come, a miniature platform is
made from sticks tied together, and garlands and offerings of cakes
are hung on to it. A small heap of rice is made on the platform,
and just above it a clove is suspended from a thread. Songs are sung,
and the principal relative opens the pot in which the spirit of the
deceased has been enclosed. The spirit is called upon to join the
sacred company of the dead, and the party continue to sing and to
adjure it with all their force. The thread from which the clove is
suspended begins to swing backwards and forwards over the rice; and
a pig and two or three chickens are crushed to death as offerings to
the soul of the deceased. Finally the clove touches the rice, and it
is believed that the spirit of the dead man has departed to join the
sainted dead. The Katias consider that after this he requires nothing
more from the living, and so they do not make the annual offerings
to the souls of the departed.