Religion - - Posted on March, 16 at 6:14 pm
The custom of providing food for the dead appears in all ages, civilisations and in most parts of the world. It is based on the animistic conception of the soul, which after the departure from the body is imagined to be a feeble entity with needs similar to a living being; thus in need of help from the living at least till it finds its final abode. This concept leads relatives and friends to offer food and articles of daily use at the time of the last rites and at festivals and rituals related to the dead ancestors. In addition, food is also offered so as to satisfy the Pitars who are protectors of the living.
The Todas living in the Nilgiri ranges in southern India perform an elaborate ritual after a death in the village. Food plays a major role in the rituals. The dead body is wrapped in a cloak with Jaggery, rice, honey and other such materials kept in it and then burnt. Male buffaloes are sacrificed as a part of the ritual. It is believed that the deceased reaches the Amnodore world on one of the peaks of the Nilgiris and lives there with the sacrificed animals.
The Khasis of North east India bury the dead twice. At the first burial ritual they hang a basket over the dead body containing pieces of sacrificed animals and in a dish put food, betel nut and water for refreshment. Eggs, leg of a fowl, lower jaws of animals are also kept in the burial pit before closing it. At the second burial when the bones are shifted to the family burial ground the food items are offered again.
The last rites of the Mikirs involve use of a lot of rice beer and food. The youth of the village are invited to dance for three days and at night for the cremation. They are served beer, pork and rice, which is also offered to the dead. The people dance till the body burns on the pyre. The remains are gathered and buried with food placed on top.
The Vedic people offered food for the manes on various occasions. The literature gives an account of the foodstuff liked by the manes as barley, green gram, black gram, white flowers, Darbha grass, cow’s milk, ghee, honey and meat of a rhino. The taboos are Masura (lentils), Rajamasha, lotus, Bel, Neem and sheep’s milk. A hymn tells us that the manes sit on the Darbha grass to the left and accept the food offered to them in the fire with the sound Swadha.
In the Mahabharata the manes are depicted voicing their wishes as - ‘would we be fortunate enough that one of our descendants will offer Payas with ghee in the Dakshinayana. Will there be someone who will offer meat of a ruddy ram in the Magha Constellation’
The rites for the dead specified in the Sutra literature included making rice balls, which were offered thrice to the pathway, on the way to the crematorium. One of the archaic customs was to kill an old cow to keep its body parts on the dead body for cremation. For the last rites of an Ahitagni a special hut was erected outside the house, which holds the remains. A pot with holes holding curds and the Vajin (scum of soured milk) was hung on top of it. Later rice was cooked on the cremation grounds. Five rice balls with milk, curds, and honey poured on them were offered. A semi-liquid preparation of Sattu and milk was offered to Yama, the first Pitar. The rituals practiced by mainstream Hindus today differ from the account given by the Sutras but the element of offering rice balls remains.
In addition to the last rites and Shraddhas, food is offered to the Pitars on auspicious occasions by way of Nandi Shraddha to obtain their blessings. Though food offerings are basically made to fulfil the needs of the departed, it also helps fulfil the need of the living to connect to the past. Food quest has been a central aspect of human life. Thus through offering food we attempt to share the insecurities, triumph and sorrows of our individual quest with the guardians and feel secure.
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