This blog is different than my others- it is less of a story and more of word vomit of information. I apologize, but as much as this blog is for others, it’s also for myself. And I don’t want to forget this memory. This blog is merely to provide slight insight into my world last Friday, but please note I am no expert on the Hindu religion. That said, some of this may be hard to read and is not for the queasy- you’ve been warned.
One time I walked an hour and a half to a Nepali temple. We got lost and I loved every minute of it. Shoutout to my squad mate (and best bud) Taylor for always being up for an adventure.
One time I was warned not to make eye contact with a monkey because he would “attack” me. Cool.
One time I had a tour guide provide an in-depth explanation of Kama sutra while insisting I take pictures of the wooden carvings. All 108 of them. (Sorry, grandma).
One time said tour guide tried to make me give him a 100% tip. Good try, sir.
One time I stood at the side of the Bagmati River and watched a person’s face burn.
Yeah. Their whole body. I couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman. I was far enough away to not see the details but close enough for their ashes to rain on to me.
Last week my entire squad arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal for team debrief. For all those unfamiliar with the World Race lingo, debrief is a time for an entire squad to come together and, well, debrief. Our squad mentor and coaches flew from the States to be with us as we processed our first month on the Race. It was like a giant family reunion and my heart was HAPPY (and not just because we had beds AND hot showers, I genuinely love W Squad).
Along with debrief comes downtime, so on Friday Taylor and I decided to go on a little adventure to a Hindu temple, Pashupati. Call us free-spirited or stupid but we decided not to look up directions and take a paper map through a city that is more confusing than calculus. Actually, I can’t confirm that… I never made it passed pre-calc. I regret nothing.
But, I digress. Pashupati is one of the most sacred Hindu temples in the world- our tour guide actually referred to it as the “Mecca for Hindus.” The temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva, the creator god. (Small factoid for all you readers, there are 330 million Hindu Gods. And no, I can’t keep them straight). Now, since we aren’t Hindus Taylor and I were not actually allowed to enter the main temple. We could, however, explore the rest of the grounds- full of smaller temples and a whole lot of history (blood stains from both human- this is no longer practiced- and animal sacrifices).
What’s so unique about Pashupati? This is where many Hindus are cremated. Hinduism stresses the belief in incarnation, and therefore places less significance on the body and more on the soul. Through cremation the soul is released from the body and can continue its spiritual journey.
In order to be cremated the body must first go through a purification process. I wasn’t able to fully understand what this consists of (accents are hard), but it sounded like the body must be washed by the family- particularly the son(s) of the deceased.
Taylor and I actually had to step over a dead body right before he/she was taken inside the temple to begin this process. The body was covered in an orange cloth, signifying peace.
About 20 minutes later an ambulance arrived and our tour guide said, “when they open the door there will either be a dead person, who died about an hour ago, or a person waiting to die.” Many of the sick come to Pashupati to await their death, believing if they die on the Pashupati grounds they will have a peaceful and divinely appointed afterlife.
After the purification, the body is taken to one of the ghats along the river. Here, the body is spun by the deceased’s son 3 times, representing the Hindus’ trinity. Next, the son places a candle in the mouth of his father/mother, and eventually the face catches fire. The candle is placed here because it is believed that the worst of all “evils” (sins) stems from words- it is the last part of purification. Eventually the face begins to catch fire as the entire body is coated in natural products like oil and butter, which serves as kindling. Then straw is placed on top of the person. Then ash flies into the air and falls down into the river.
The body burns for about 5 hours, give or take. Our tour guide said that about 50 bodies are cremate there everyday. But only people over the age of 10. In the Hindu religion, pregnant women and children under the age of 10 are buried. I don’t know how he said everything so nonchalantly. The entire time Taylor and I felt heavy. We felt confused. Especially when we learned about the cannibals (a story for another blog).
But mostly we felt sad. Sad that people were worshipping gods that can’t hear them. Sad that our tour guide doesn’t believe in the afterlife. Sad that the Holy Spirit didn’t give us a word for him.
But we also felt privileged. Not everyone gets to be a light in a place of such darkness.
“‘You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lamp-stand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”
~Matthew 5:15
*Again, I apologize if any of this information is incorrect. If you have any knowledge on the subject please feel free to pass it along!*
