The Democrat. (Scotland Neck, Halifax Co., N.C.) 1884-1896, 1885-07-23
A Persian Funeral.

Usually in the cool of the morning OF
afternoon the funeral is performed. Ii
the deceased is poor man, the coffin Is
LAID in rough wooden covered bier OF
tabut. In the case of the very poor, OF
in times of epidemics, the coffin is often
dispensed with, and the dead are inferred
in their shrouds. These, formed often
of MANY Yards of cotton cloth, are
swathed tightly round them, as was done
in ancient Egypt Often a much larger
tabut is used; and then the wealth OF
rank of the deceased is shown by the
dark Cashmere shawls which are hired
for the purpose of wrapping over the
wood work and canopy that cover the
imarah, or portable shrine on which the
coffin is borne: in this case the coffin is
also covered with shawls. Shawls, which
are constantly bought aud sold in Persia,
are at once unstable if they smell OF
camphor; for it is inferred that they
have been used for covering the dead.
TO preserve them from moth, shawls in
the East are always kept in boxes OF
cvnress wood. The friends and relatives,
and even passers by, willingly take thell
places as bearers of the dead; for it is
considered one of the highest forms OF
charity to assist in the work of bearing
Mussulman to his last home.
The graveyard is reached-a bare spot
outside the town, the home of the jackal
and hyena. There are 70 waving cy-
presses here, as in Turkey. A few small
arched shrines-generallyi in ruins-mark
where some holy man has been inferred.
Grotesque stone lions of life size mark
the graves of those who were warriors,
| while little square inches yard high
contain highly colored pictures of un-
welded youths or of those slain in war.
As rule, however, small flat stones re-
cord the names of the dead, a few texts
from the Koran marking the piety OF
their relations; but often the little
mounds have merely row of fints that
loving hands have placed there, or a
rough bit of rock or tile at head and
foot. The nearest relatives lay the body
in the shallow grave, priest says a
prayer, the shroud is loosened that the
dead man may be enabled to arise at the
resurrection without trouble, and the
coffin lid is replaced Then another
prayer is read. The ''Fatihat," or first
chapter of the Koran, is recited by all
1t is merely a short prayer-the grave is
closed, little water is sprinkled on it,
and all is over. If the family of the de-
! ceased can afford it's tiny tent is pitched,
and a priest remains to pray and to read
the Koran over the grave for many days.
The whole of the attendants of the
funeral are entertained at dinner at the
house of the deceased. The mourning
is continued for short period-a few
days or month, according to the wealth
of tho 70 p,i1v Thop ono+bor 10 x-icb Nv
ercise of hospitality and dole to the
poor take place, and this is the sign that
the days of mourning are over. Sombre
garments are cast aside; the family go to
the public bath; once more they dye their
hair with hinna, also the soles of their
feet and the palms O. their hands, their
nails and finger tips. The women sig
nalize the end of their mourning by q
visit to the cemetery. taking with them
sweetmeats and a peculiar kind of bread
they eat at the grave-side small quantity
of these, and what remains is given to
the poor A widow will often VOW a
monthly or yearly dole at her husbands
grave, and the VOW is always piously
carried out.
! Often among the rich or religious the
body is merely placed in some mosque o,
shrine, as amanat, that is to gay, on de-
post. After some months, or weeks, OF
years, it is wrapped in thin felt, and dis.
patched, with hundreds of others, by
mule caravan, to holy Meshed, to be
buried near Imam Ria, or to sacred
Kerbela, to lie beside the blessed Hous.
sein. In travelling in Persia one fire.
| quently meets these caravans. Two Of
even four collins are strapped on each
mule. 1t is needless to add that they are
most Objectionable upon the road and ii
the caravansaries, and doubtless tend te
! spread plague and cholera. But coffin:
| often form ordinary loads in genera
caravan; they are not objected to, ano
are noted in the way-bill with othe
loads.