Tharus of Dang: Rites de Passage and Festivals

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/ Kailash The rest of the vessels, which are empty, are used in the culha (kitchen) ceremony to be performed during the funeral rites. A few elderly men from the village help in making a macān (stretcher to carry the dead). A macan is a ladder-like frame made of pieces of bamboo. It is made of seven or nine (always an odd number) cross-pieces attached to two long side- pieces. If the dead person was a married man, his widow breaks her lac-bangles, takes off her anklets and all of her ear ornaments and bead-necklaces and lays them all (apart from the precious ones) on the dead body. One male lineage member dresses the dead man's head with a white turban, starting from the left side (reverse to the usual manner). No turban is given to a dead female. Hiran Khawaina Ceremony By now male representatives from all lineage families have assembled. In case of the lineage-households, in the village, the women also assemble there. Households of the same clan or sub-clan living in the village whose lineal re- lationship with the dead person's family is not sure, are also expected to send one male representative to the dead person's house. Now the hiran khawaina ceremony is celebrated. Hiran is a mixture of rice with some water, turmeric powder and a nom- 21 inal quantity of gold-dust obtained by scraping the natthya'
of the widow (if the deceased was a married man) or of the
deceased herself. First of all the chief mourner (kirryā
baithuiya) puts a little of the mixture in the mouth of the
21.
22 Big nose-ring.
22. The kirryā baithuiya or chief mourner is usually the eldest
son of the deceased, though other sons may also take this role.
In the absence of direct descendants, the sons of male collat-
erals may also serve as kirryā baithuiyā.