Book Review “ Death ends life, not a relationship ,” as Mitch Albom put it. That is why, we have so many rituals associated with death. Minakshi Dewan’s book, The Final Farewell [HarperCollins, 2023], is a well-researched book about those rituals. The book starts with an elaborate description of the Sikh rituals associated with death and cremation, before moving on to Islam, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and finally Hinduism. After that, it’s all about the various traditions and related details of Hindu final rites. A few chapters are dedicated to the problems of widows in India, gender discrimination in the last rites, and the problem of unclaimed dead bodies. There is a chapter titled ‘Grieving Widows in Hindi Cinema’ too. Death and its rituals form an unusual theme for a book. Frankly, I don’t find the topic stimulating in any way. Obviously, I didn’t buy this book. It came to me as quite many other books do – for reasons of their own. I read the book finally, having shelv
It is not true that Delhi does not have spring! January and early February are the days of spring and flowers. March is already hot :)
ReplyDeleteI was being metaphorical, Sunil ji. thanks.
DeleteDivine intervention, luck are all terms that we can use but the point is that not everybody gets to be in such great surroundings. Sir you are lucky.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Athena, I'm grateful to my stars.
Deletei liked fresh vs stale... maybe the word "stale" is a little out of place... how about new vs old ...
ReplyDeleteAccepted
DeleteSome deep observations there
ReplyDeleteSometimes life demands depth :
DeleteWhat comparisons!
ReplyDeleteGood read with pics. :)
Thanks, Indrani.
DeleteThese captures are great indeed. However, I would really wanna know someday, does the environment affect people's character?
ReplyDeleteOf course, Namrata, the environment certainly influences one's character. Living in a place with a lot of space around you would be entirely different from living in a crowded place, for example.
DeleteVery nice observation. Nice to read. Yes environment do affects one's behaviour/character.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gargi.
Deleteall the pictures really are revealing the contrast...our life is full of that..
ReplyDeletePolarity is a human creation... contrasts belong to nature.
DeleteI couldn't help but notice that in every pic, you had old dying tree and fresh green trees togehter :)
ReplyDeleteThat's the contrast, Pankti. Nature is constantly dying and being reborn...
Delete"without an intervening spring" - same story out here in Bangalore, and I was reminded of the blog I posted last year: http://navy-blue-jeans.blogspot.in/2013/02/spring.html
ReplyDeleteSpring has to disappear from cities. Destiny. Of the planet. The planet belongs to ...
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