Teary farewell to ‘Lord’ langur in Giridih village

DHANBAD: Villagers of Kharakdiha chowk under Jamua block of Giridih district took out a funeral procession of a gray langur called Hanuman on Friday.
The langur died after being electrocuted when it jumped on a electric transformer at Kharakdiha chowk under Jamua block, about 40km from district headquarters at Giridih.
The villagers, supported by Hindu Navjavan Samity Sangh (HNSS), Kharkdiha, collected money and incense sticks for the funeral before proceeding to Triveni ghat for the cremation.
A section of villagers correlated the sudden death of the animal with the death of an elderly woman in the village, who also died around the same time but under different circumstances.
The deceased woman’s family members also participated in the procession.
“It may be a coincidence but my mother was a devout worshipper of Hanuman ji. My mother’s faith in Hanuman ji was very strong.”, said a panchayat representative Sambhunath Sahu, who’s 90-year-old mother, Rukmani Devi, died of cardiac arrest just before the the monkey died in the village.
According to eyewitnesses, the monkey died near Hanuman temple.
“The villagers also paid tribute to Hanuman ji, before heading to the ghat for cremation. We did not expect to see so many men, women and children at the procession”, said HNSS president Rahul Kumar, who lead the procession to the burial ground.
The villagers also decided to organize a community langar (community kitchen) to observe rituals on the third day as per Hindu custom.