Sakten Village

Shaped by the harsh northern environment in which they live, the people of Merak and Sakten, the nomadic community of the east, have evolved a unique identity and lifestyle that is in practiced in life and in death.
When a member of the community dies in the valley, the body is not cremated, as is done in most parts of Bhutan, but cut into pieces and thrown into a river.
There is a certain ritual that is followed before a body is given a water burial and the way a body is cut is determined by the gender.

After a person dies, the body is, on a suitable day, soaked in water for three to six days, as indicated by astrologers. The corpse of the female is cut facing upward, while the male body facies the ground.

After it is taken out of the water, it is said that the head of the corpse is cut first and hidden while other parts of the body have been chopped into pieces.

“This is done to avoid the attachments involved,” said 55-year old Pasang from Sakten. “We are from a small community and everybody knows each other, so it is difficult to look at the face while cutting their body.”

The man who does the job, can be anybody whom the astrologer picks as appropriate, like someone in the family or a close relative.

Lines are drawn over the body using a horn, from shoulder to toe, before it is cut. A male body is marked, starting from the right shoulder, and a female from the left. The hands and limbs are cut first and then made into 108 pieces.

According to Pasang, it was considered best if the body was cut into a thousand pieces to be fed to fishes. Sometimes, it is also made it into 400 pieces. It is then thrown into the river in four different directions.

In the past, it was said that the skull of a dead person was taken out and the man who cut the body had to drink water from the skull three times to purify himself. This practice is now rare.

According to Lam Rinchen of Merak, Buddhism prescribed four types of death rituals, cremation, burial, offering corpse to birds and vultures, and to fishes and insects in water. “But the one we practice is considered best of the four, followed by offering to vulture, cremation, and then comes burial,” he said.

Lam Rinchen said that cremating a body would pollute the air, which would not appeal to Aum Jomo, the local deity of the valley. “If we did that, it would disturb the serene environment, bringing natural hazards like excessive rain,” said Lam Rinchen.

All death rituals are performed at a particular place near the Gamri chhu in Sakten and Merak Amai Ri in Merak. Normal funeral prayer ceremonies are normally done at home.

Sangay Khandu, 32, said it was a problem when the river swelled during monsoon. There have been incidents where the body has been washed away before it could be given a proper water burial.

“We treat the body with all the respect it deserves and stick to rituals that will lead the deceased to the right path after death,” he said. Source: Kuenselonline