Author: Vijay Pratap Singh
Publication: The New Indian Express
Date: June 24, 2010
URL: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/35-kms-from-allahabad-women-breach-last-male-bastion-cremation-ground/637938/
Six years ago, for Badami Devi, performing
the last rites of the dead was unthinkable. It was considered a taboo for
women. But her husband Radhey Shyam - who pursued this ancestral profession
of Mahapatra Brahmins in Maniaya village - was seriously ill.
Badami learnt all the rituals to prove that she could do this as well as any
man. Today, there are eight women, some of them unmarried girls, pursuing
this hereditary profession in Karchana tehsil, about 35 kms from Allahabad.
While some of the women try to supplement
the family income this way, others have taken it up to continue their ancestral
profession in absence of male members in the family.
Bodies from about 150 villages are brought
to the cremation ghat on the bank of the Ganga in Maniaya daily and the 10-odd
families of Mahapatra Brahmins have a hereditary right to perform their last
rites.
There are no fixed charges, but the bereaved
family invariably donates some money to the priest who performs the last rites.
Usually, it is something between Rs 100 and Rs 200.
"There is nothing wrong in taking up
this work, but one should be well-versed in the rituals," said 18-year-old
Kaushalya, daughter of Badami Devi. "In Hindu religious texts, special
importance is given to the person performs the last rites. We attained the
knowledge and then got into this profession. Now, our men take up other jobs
and this helps supplement the family income. We do not object if people come
with their own priest, but we are ready when anyone needs out services.
Kaushalya dropped out of school after Class
VIII and joined the family profession.
Rakhi, another girl, said: "Maharajin
Bua of Allahabad was the first woman in the country who first defied tradition
by getting into this profession. People praised her. Now we are also doing
this noble work."
Arti took up the profession after her father
had died two years ago.
"There was no male member in my family
who could carry on the family profession," said 22-year-old Arti. "Being
the eldest of three siblings, I decided to continue the tradition. After some
initial resistance, people accepted me."
Badami Devi's mother-in-law had been the first
woman in the village to perform the last rites.
Some eight years ago, a body was lying at
the ghat, said Badami Devi. The bereaved family was very poor and could not
afford the expenses of a cremation. "My mother-in-law Shanti Devi gathered
courage and performed the rituals despite opposition from villagers."
Later, Badami Devi started cremating bodies
when her husband was bed-ridden for long. Gradually, the other women joined
in.
Badami Devi is the head of this group of women.
In case of any dispute, she has the final word. "They obey my decisions,"
said Badami. Her husband now works in Mumbai.
"These are the poorest families in Maniaya
village," said Lal Chandra Pandey, a local priest. "There is nothing
wrong if women perform last rites and the men do some other work to supplement
the family income."
