हिंदू धर्म में शव को बड़े पुत्र ही अग्नि क्यों देते हैं।। अंतिम संस्कार बेटा ही क्यों करता है।।

0:01Do you know that in our Hindu religion ,

0:03when a father passes away , only his

0:05eldest son is allowed to perform his

0:08last rites and light the funeral pyre ?

0:11Why does this happen ? Have you ever

0:14wondered ? Let us tell you why . It is

0:18said that one is blessed with a son

0:20only after earning merits through many

0:23lifetimes . Therefore , to ensure the

0:26father's soul finds peace and does not

0:29have to go to hell , the duty of

0:31lighting the pyre is given only to the

0:33eldest son . Doing this helps the

0:36father's soul attain heaven . According

0:40to our Hindu scriptures , the funeral

0:43pyre should only be lit by the eldest

0:45or the youngest son . Scriptures state

0:50that when the eldest son lights his

0:53father's pyre , the soul finds peace and

0:57achieves salvation . If for any reason

1:03the eldest son cannot be there to light

1:05the pyre , the youngest son may do so .

1:11The truth is that while we are born in

1:13this world , our death is inevitable one

1:16day . Many rules have been established

1:20in Hinduism regarding death . For

1:24instance , when someone dies , women are

1:25not allowed to go to the cremation

1:27ground . On the other hand , women are

1:30not permitted to light the funeral pyre

1:32. Only a son can light the funeral pyre

1:36. According to Hindu beliefs , a mystery

1:40related to death is that only the

1:42eldest son of the house can perform the

1:44last rites . This is done so that the

1:49deceased soul does not go to hell , and

1:52if the eldest son performs the rites ,

1:54the soul attains heaven . In human life ,

2:00the last of the 16 sacraments is the '

2:03Antyesti ' or funeral rite . In this ,

2:08after death , the body is cremated by

2:10offering it to the fire . Rituals like '

2:15Dashgatra ' , ' Shraddha ' , and '

2:18Sapindikaran ' also fall under this

2:20category . Humans live in two types of

2:24bodies . One is the subtle body and the

2:28other is the physical body . We can see ,

2:31touch , and feel the physical body .

2:35However , we can only experience the

2:37subtle body . The human subtle body

2:41enters the physical body with 17

2:43elements : five organs of action , five

2:46senses , five vital airs , the mind , and

2:48intellect . And after death , the soul

2:52departs from the physical body carrying

2:55these 17 elements . When the soul leaves

3:00the physical body , it receives an

3:02ethereal body to protect the subtle

3:04body . It is through this that the soul

3:08gains movement . As soon as the subtle

3:12body leaves the physical body , it

3:14immediately adopts this ethereal form .

3:18It becomes lighter compared to the

3:20physical body . Because of dwelling in

3:25the gross body for so long , it develops

3:27an attachment to the body . Thus ,

3:31through the airy body , it repeatedly

3:33tries to stay with the subtle parts of

3:35its former body . To liberate it from

3:40this , rituals like Dashgatra Shradh

3:41have been prescribed in the scriptures .

3:45The body is cremated so the soul's

3:48desire does not linger on the buried or

3:52decaying corpse , allowing it to be

3:55freed . Through cremation , the dead body

3:59repays its debt to the five elements .

4:03Then , the ashes are immersed in the

4:05holy Ganges . Only then is the soul's

4:09connection with the former body severed

4:11. Afterward , satisfied by the offerings

4:16made during Shradh , it abandons the

4:19ghostly form . Bathing the body ,

4:24scattering flowers , garlanding ,

4:26wrapping in a shawl , and joining the

4:28funeral procession are signs of respect

4:30. Using coconut , sandalwood , ghee ,

4:35saffron , and gold on the pyre is meant

4:38to protect against pollution . But the

4:41last rites performed with the chanting

4:43of mantras are for the peace of the

4:45soul . In cremation , the tradition is to

4:49place the deceased's head towards the

4:51north and feet towards the south .

4:56Before lighting the pyre , the son

4:58carries a water-filled pot on his left

5:00shoulder and circles the body starting

5:03from the head . Upon completing the

5:06circumambulation , he drops and breaks

5:08the pot . A natural question arises : why

5:14should the son alone perform the last

5:16rites after death ? Born from the

5:20father's seed , the son is said to

5:22possess the father's own qualities . In

5:25Hinduism , the word ' Putra ' ( son ) means

5:27one who saves from the hell called ' Pu '

5:30. It is the son's duty to lift the

5:33father from hell and help him attain a

5:35better place . This is why all of the

5:38father's post-death and physical

5:40rituals are performed by the son . The

5:45Yajurveda states that those who perform

5:48funeral rites according to the

5:50scriptures ensure the welfare of the

5:53family in every way . Therefore , rituals

5:58after death are prescribed for the

6:00liberation of the soul's subtle body .

6:04This definitely has an effect on the

6:06subtle body . After hearing this story ,

6:10do let us know how you felt by

6:12commenting . Thank you .