MUMBAI: The Navsari Samast Anjuman on Sunday decided to allot a burial ground to Parsis who choose an alternative method of disposing of their dead, instead of the tradition of leaving the bodies exposed to scavenger birds. Despite a strong protest from the high priests, the Navsari Anjuman held a vote in which six people opposed the plan of burial ground while a majority of 156 supported it.
A section of Parsis across the country has long been demanding acceptance of methods like burial and cremation, as they are of the view that the traditional system has failed due to the disappearance of vultures. “We had called for a meeting and one of the agendas was to discuss the demand for a burial ground. Only six people were against the burial ground,” Yazdi Kasad, secretary of the Anjuman, told The Hindu .
The Hindu was first to report, in its January 7 edition, about a letter signed by 163 Parsis, which was sent to the Navsari Anjuman, demanding an aramgah or burial ground in the 15 acres of land where the two dakhmas or Towers of Silence stand. Dakhmas are large wells where the dead are put to rest and left to be eaten by scavenger birds. “The Anjumans in Bengaluru and Solapur allow burials. We have promised that we will let both the methods function, and leave it to the choice of individuals,” said Mr. Kasad.
In 2006, an elderly Parsi woman, Dhun Baria, released photographs of bodies rotting inside the Tower of Silence in Mumbai. But the Bombay Parsi Punchayet that overlooks the Doongerwadi in Malabar Hill had said that the system was functioning perfectly. “The Navsari Anjuman’s decision tells us that the community is now convinced about the failure of the Dokhmenishini system. I am confident that Anjumans in other parts of the country will follow suit,” said Homi Dalal, a Parsi from Andheri.
After the Navsari Anjuman announced the agenda of the meeting, the high priests had expressed their disapproval. In a letter to the Navsari Anjuman, Dastur Dr. Feroze Kotwal, a high priest from Mumbai, wrote, “There are vultures to be found in good number in Gujarat and in the village dakhma near Surat. Our ancestors had unflinching faith in Dokhmenishini, and it is not wise to switch to an irreligious and anti–Zoroastrian system where dakhmas are in service.”
