Parsi cremation mumbai

How much longer can this 3,year-old tradition survive?

In August , a group of Parsi-Zoroastrians inaugurated a prayer hall at the Worli municipal crematorium for families of those who chose not to be interred at the Tower of Silence on Malabar Hill. The three-centuries-old Tower of Silence, called Dakhmas, receives around dead bodies every year, but in the absence of vultures, bodies can rot for months. A demand to construct a crematorium in a corner of the acre wooded Tower of Silence was not accepted by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet BPP , the trust that manages the cemetery. Zoroastrian death rituals include prayers for several days after the funeral. Two priests, who conducted after-death prayers for those who were cremated or buried, were banned from the prayer halls.

Parsi cremation mumbai

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Many Parsi Irani Zoroastrian residents of Mumbai, concerned that the remains of their loved ones were not being speedily disposed but were putrefying, began clamouring for alternate systems of disposal — burial or cremation. The first seeds for a Prayer Hall where Parsi-Irani Zoroastrians could opt for alternate modes of disposal and be assured of obsequies being performed were planted many years earlier in the nineteen eighties, when Jamsheed Kanga, then Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai was approached by the late J. Tata enquiring which of the crematoriums at Mumbai would be appropriate for the obsequies and funeral of his brother D. Tata who had passed away, as many dignitaries were expected to attend. At that time, some of the crematoriums were closed as they were being upgraded, whilst others were very shabby.

In the Tower of Silence, which is situated at Malabar Hills, solar concentrators have been installed in order to decompose dead bodies. Mumbai: The ancient Zoroastrian sky burial tradition is all but vanishing with the community in Mumbai opting for other alternatives such solar desiccation and cremation, owing to the disappearance of vultures from the city. However, with the extinction of vultures in the city, we have come up with solar desiccation where the body is left to dry by the sun. However, this process is difficult to use during the monsoons. The solar panels converge light and heat at degrees Celsius on a corpse to quicken decomposition. Community members also said that ravens and kites have now replaced the vultures around the Tower of Silence. Clean chit for Aryan Khan in cruise drugs case.

Parsi cremation mumbai

Many Parsi Irani Zoroastrian residents of Mumbai, concerned that the remains of their loved ones were not being speedily disposed but were putrefying, began clamouring for alternate systems of disposal — burial or cremation. The first seeds for a Prayer Hall where Parsi-Irani Zoroastrians could opt for alternate modes of disposal and be assured of obsequies being performed were planted many years earlier in the nineteen eighties, when Jamsheed Kanga, then Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai was approached by the late J. Tata enquiring which of the crematoriums at Mumbai would be appropriate for the obsequies and funeral of his brother D. Tata who had passed away, as many dignitaries were expected to attend. At that time, some of the crematoriums were closed as they were being upgraded, whilst others were very shabby.

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An exclusive crematorium for as tiny a minority is impractical anywhere, and unthinkable on swanky Malabar Hill. Over the past month, more than half-a-dozen such cases were reported in Mumbai and a few more in Vadodara and Ahmedabad. An old sketch of a Tower of Silence in Mumbai. But the towers are now far from silent. Already have an account? No Parsi would want the mystic eye of the vulture to be replaced by the rapacious one of the land shark. Progressive Parsis grew increasingly outraged about the indignities within Doongerwadi, and the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, a trust managing the affairs and properties of the community, tried to respond to the crisis through innovation. An SC order clarifies. The bones are generally allowed for a few days to dry under the scorching sun before removal. The spacious 3,sq-ft prayer hall is the product of a vociferous debate between the liberal and conservative factions of the community about how to dispose of the dead with dignity. Newsletters Gift Membership.

How much longer can this 3,year-old tradition survive? The prophet Zarathushtra insisted on a reverence for all elements.

The Punchayet installed large solar reflectors around the Towers to hasten the decomposition of the bodies under the sun, but according to Tamboly and other community members, this too has been ineffective. Progressive Parsis grew increasingly outraged about the indignities within Doongerwadi, and the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, a trust managing the affairs and properties of the community, tried to respond to the crisis through innovation. The dakhma is presented as the only intermediary for the true Zoroastrian. Reuse this content. The traditionalists, who are called the orthodox, say the facility has failed to convince community members to adopt unconventional funerals. Aam Aadmi Party. Delhi Lok Sabha Election Date. At the furthest end of each channel is yet another well making four in all. Four structures jut out from the inner portion of the dakhma. Traditional Parsi funeral prayers last for four days after a death, with family members practically living at specially designed prayer halls within Doongerwadi to pray for the soul of the deceased. Unfortunately, this has turned into an instrument of emotional blackmail. The Prayer Hall. However the ambient air was swiftly examined, and declared safe. Share this article.