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April 14, 2005
Burying Children Alive?
Via CNN, see this story about children being buried alive. (No, it's not what you first thought when you saw the title.)
Every two years, parents who have vowed to bury their first-born if they are blessed with a child, take part in the Kuzhimattru Thiru Vizha ceremony.The children are drugged to make them unconscious and placed in shallow "graves" in temple courtyards.
The pits are covered with leaves and dirt and the children are pulled out after Hindu priests chant a brief prayer -- lasting up to a minute.
...
Authorities have been trying for years to stop it and people found guilty face up to three years in jail and/or a fine of 5000 rupees ($114).
Wow, if all you have to do to get a child is bury it alive, then sign me up!
Seriously, though, I can't find a single other thing on the web about this, which is interesting considering the fact that it's apparently an ancient ceremony, plus it's just the sort of story that appeals to folks who love to be shocked.
Regardless, what I was curious about was whether the authorities actually starting trying to supress it in response to deaths. Sometimes when you hear about authorities trying to stomp out weird ancient practices, it is because they are odd, as opposed to dangerous. Not that I'm a relativist, but it doesn't sound as if this is a ceremony in which parents are actually trying to kill their children. I mean all they're doing is covering the children up with leaves for up to a minute. I really doubt children are dropping dead all over the place, although I can certainly see how it would be a practice that is somewhat prone to accidents, especially given the drugging.
Either way, it must really suck to be the first born child of parents with secondary infertility in India.
Posted by illuminaria at April 14, 2005 04:56 PM