Disposal of the dead

Disposal of the dead

‘Life is a onetime affair’,  this philosophy is expressed in the proverb, “Puttedi oka sari – Sachedi oka sari” (we are born only once and die only once). And, a man/woman in a Munnuru Kapus family is a loss in terms of productive work.deadbodies of this community married men and women are burnt down to ashes.  Children and un-married boy and girl or single men of whatever age are buried.  When the father or the mother dies Talagoaru (a water pot carried in front of a dead boy) does play a role at the time of death.  

As a rule the Munnurukapus burn their dead in a lying posture with the head to the south.  After death the body is washed and borne on a bier to the burning ground. The Bodies of people who die unmarried are, however, buried, being carried to the burial ground suspended on a bamboo pole and disposed of in a pit without any ceremony.  Members of the caste who cannot afford to pay the cremation expenses also bury their dead.  On the third day after death the ashes and bones are collected and thrown into a river by Vibhutidharis and are buried under a platform by Tirumandharis.  On the same day fowls are sacrificed in the name of the deceased and the flesh is cooked by a Satani (present day Brahmins).