| Living
in United States, Europe, Canada and other foreign places is considered
a great privilege by many but in reality life and death in the above said
places can be very stressful and highly traumatic. To every nook and corner
Yamaraja is sure to come to balance his death records. What happens if someone
dies either due to disease or an accident ? Where to find the funeral services
and how to conduct the last funeral rites that too as per the Hindu custom
and tradition ? Leave alone these rituals there are so many formalities
to be completed being an immigrant from other countries.
Living abroad, many families leave back their old and aging parents and here again their death cause a lot of anxiety due to lack of quick conveyance to reach India just in time for their funeral. Many are under great work pressure and cannot even leave for the funeral. Visa problems and immigration laws might not allow a person to leave the country for various reasons. However rational people might be they still believe in a proper funeral and rituals as this is the final respect they give to their loved ones. Usually 12 days of mourning consisting of family gatherings special pujas and bhajans, prayers, feeding the poor, giving alms to Brahmins etc. are all carried out. How to follow all this in a completely alien land with new culture and few support systems to back your rituals and needs ? Of course Indian societies are very active in foreign lands trying to bring together all Indians and helping one another in times of need but still someone who faces this situation is totally distraught and stuck between the tradition and the western culture. Bringing the dead back to India is a very costly affair and conducting these rituals in US will have more of an American influence than create an Indian ambience. The cremation system is different where in India the oldest son sets the fire in the pyre but in America or other countries it is pressing the button. But still some service minded Indians realizing this need have actually offered assistance to find the proper funeral home and the ceremonies attached to it like the reading of Guru Granth Sahib, arranging for pundits etc. they even arrange for the ashes to be send to Varanasi for immersion in the holy Ganges or in Allahabad. Memorial services and yearly shrarathas are conducted in their respective countries for their dead parents or elders in the nearby temples or gurudwars where the sons and daughters and even grand children of the bereaved can attend. |