Dignity in Death - A crematorium design dissertation (2020) by Utsav Chaudhury by utsav chaudhury

Dignity in Death

A crematorium design thesis

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of

Bachelor of Architecture by

Chaudhury Utsav Swapnadeep 2016PA0036

Guide:

Prof. Shrish Jaiswal

Pillai College of Architecture, New Panvel.

University of Mumbai 2020-2021

Thesis Approval for B.Arch.

This dissertation entitled____________________________________ ________________________________________________________ by _____________________________________________________ is approved for the degree of Bachelor of Architecture.

Examiners

1.--------------------------------------------2.--------------------------------------------Date: Place:

University of Mumbai

MAHATMA EDUCATION SOCIETY’S

PILLAI COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

Dr. K. M. Vasudevan Pillais’ Campus, 10, Sector-16, New Panvel. – 410 206

Certificate This is to certify that the project entitled “Dignity in Death” is the bona-fide work of “Chaudhury Utsav Swapnadeep” 2016PA0036 Of the Semester IX of Pillai’s College of Architecture and was carried out in the college under my guidance during academic year 2020-21.

Dr. Sudnya Mahimkar

Signature of Guide:

Principal

Name of Guide: Prof. Shrish Jaiswal Date: 4th January, 2020

Declaration I declare that this written submission represents my ideas in my own words and where others’ ideas or words have been included, I have adequately cited and referenced the original sources. I also declare that I have adhered to all principles of academic honesty and integrity and have not misrepresented or fabricated or falsified any idea/data/fact/source in my submission. I have read and know the meaning of plagiarism and I understand that any violation of the above will be cause for disciplinary action by the institute and can also evoke penal action from the sources which have thus not been properly cited or from whom proper permission has not been taken when needed.

___________________________ (signature)

Chaudhury Utsav Swapnadeep 2016PA0036

Date: 4th January 2020

Illustration by Sara Wong for TIME magazine

Acknowledgment This dissertation, wouldn’t be possible without the help and support of most of my peers and guides and would like to use this opportunity to express my gratitude for the same. Foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my Thesis guide, Prof. Shrish Jaiswal for the support, patience, motivation, enthusiasm and immense knowledge. His guidance helped me in the time of research and writing of this thesis. I would also like to express me gratitude to my supervisors, my friends and more for their valuable contribution. I would also like to mention the teaching, library and non teaching staff of Pillai college of Architecture. Last but not the least, I would like to thank my family for motivating and guiding me throughout the course of Architecture.

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Illustration by Fien Jorissen. Rites of Passage, New York times, February 28, 2019. 12

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Abstract From the beginning of man trying to understand the meaning of life and his existence, the idea of death as his ultimatum of truth has always been seen as a point of transition from the current realm to another. Ancient beliefs looked at this idea of death and this transfer in a different light, building giant mausoleums of necropolises filled with worldly possessions to facilitate the deceased transition in the afterlife. Soon after the Industrial revolution, and a series of achievements in the medical sciences ensured higher life spans of the average human, the idea of death, and with it the romantics, seemed to go away. Major breakthroughs in vaccines sought to end the pandemics that had befell hundreds of thousands of men, women and children. A change was noticed to where this idea of the ultimate truth became a symbol of horror and repentance, and something avoidable.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Since the start of the year of 2020, the pandemic has challenged the way of our lives and this idea of the transition back in to common light. Seemingly, created due to man’s own greed; which still hasn’t found any definite method of ‘flattening the curve’. With again hundreds of thousands in fatalities, the ultimate truth faces us again. This sense of transition into the other realm is clear and its need to be addressed properly is important. Every individual on his passing should get a proper burial/cremation, be it any religion. The congregation of the next to kin, their remembrance of the deceased and the prayers of the deliverance of the deceased’s soul from God is expected and is looked for by the family members. An adequate space, separate from the modernity of today’s lifestyle and a call back to the traditional rites of passage and deliverance becomes mandatory. The current design of crematoriums sanctioned by government ventures are minimum and can only accommodate the final funeral rite of the deceased that is the cremation/burial. With no proper space for congregation, remembrance and acceptance in these establishments. The funeral of the deceased gets tainted and the spiritual acceptance for the family members is not fully attained. With each funeral depleting some amount of earth resources, it will be about time, these resources will get extinguished, considering the already existing high need for these resources for industrial work. There also has to be a need for ecological friendly and climate change oriented alternatives that can be brought into the funeral rites, without disturbing the religious and spiritual practices. Although some breakthroughs to significantly reduce this overuse of resources are there, they are not widely used. A solution proposing some amount of equilibrium has to be sought after. 13

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Introduction In my experience, a funerary building has to be the least visited variety of buildings to have been visited or experienced. This is usually the case for many, as a funeral doesn’t come up often in a family. If in a scene of an unfortunate incident, a family actually discourages the younger and women to visit the funeral procession’s last rites. Living in a sense of ambiguity about the topic, and hearing stories and rumors about such spaces, fed my younger mind into thinking they were a packet of negative energy and spirits, just waiting to pounce on their next victim.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

An upbringing like this is typical and problematic, causing the default impression amongst people to be negative. Also attached with a funeral building, are feelings of exhaustion, feeling incomplete and detached instead of feeling a sense of completion, calmness and confidence regarding the last rites of their loved one. All these topics and bear to be asked and answered. Following which the need for a change is to be sought. To undo the already done damage, and the stakeholders that depend on it. The research has to be thorough regarding the history, effects on the present, and keep in mind the oncoming future needs. Inclusiveness of people of all backgrounds is to be encouraged and targeted for any such funerary structure. We have moved a lot ahead from the humble origins of when these funeral traditions were spawned, and according to the need of the hour a radical move, in regards to our future needs to be undertaken that will encourage a newer funerary system.

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Aim of the research:

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

To develop an architectural response to the existing crematorium design aesthetic by proposing an adequately designed space for crematorial practices for the deceased. Research Objectives:

Scope:

1. To understand all procedures of funeral processions and implement it wholly in design. 2. To come up with a programme that provides for the deceased and their close families’ spacial requirements. 3. A comprehensive study of data and its analysis of the ongoing trends to come up with a programme that can satisfy future needs and aspirations. 4. Employ post pandemic design solutions. 5. To select an appropriate site, and address its aspects that will govern the design program in detail.

1. To create a symbolic piece of architecture, that relates itself with the mythologies and is inclusive to its users. 2. To change the premonition of crematoriums being a sign for grimace, to a place of remembrance and religious and scientific education. 3. To challenge governmental approaches in the ‘Clean up Ganga’ initiative, by providing better quality of spaces in the proposal. 4. To create a space that put forward the technological advancements and more sustainable funeral methods, than the traditional ones.

Research Methodology:

Limitations:

1. Look at different religions and their mythologies, and their descriptions of death/ afterlife and retribution. 2. Understand the funeral rites for the religions and their design needs. 3. Identify the ecological impacts of funeral processions and the carbon emissions and carbon footprints of different types of funeral customs. 4. To research about the economics of funerals. 5. Recognize the stakeholders that are involved in the industry of funerals. 6. Address public health concerns regarding funerals. 7. Analyse the affordability and accessibility of funerals.

1. Urban cities are crowded, crematoriums are larger challenge as the site areas will be lesser and surrounding areas will be covered with residential areas. 2. A funeral is usually devoid of its surrounding context, introverted from its neighbours. 3. The funerary building shouldn’t allow for injustices/inequalities for the people that visit it.

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Research Methodology

Stage 1

Understanding what cons�tutes as death? And what follows a�er it?

Read into the mythologies and beliefs of diﬀerent religions, their descip�ons of death, a�erlife, heaven and hells.

Get an idea of their funeral tradi�ons and the spaces that correspond to them.

Stage 2

Undertanding how this ‘death’ gets undigniﬁed/ should be digniﬁed. Observing the rela�onship of funeral customs and their toll on the sensi�ve ecology.

How are Funerals and its economy related?

Observing the rela�onship shared between funerals and the public

Is a tradi�onal funeral aﬀordable?

Understand the places of abuse for the user. Surveys to understand their impressions of a funerary building.

Stage 3

Analyse a�empts at a design that provides for dignity in one’s death.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Stage 4

To ﬁnd a place, best suited for an architectural interven�on.

Get an idea of the execu�on of poetry and the func�oning of a funerary building

A place of religious signiﬁcance and where a funerary building can invoke a poi�ve change for its users.

Stage 5

Formula�on of Design brief and conclusion

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

1. Title 2. Approval 3. Certificate 4. Declaration 5. Acknowledgment 6. Cover 7. Abstract 8. Introduction 9. Synopsis 10. Research methodology 11. Chapter 1: Religions and the evolution of their funeral traditions a. 1.1 Ways to dispose human bodies. b. 1,2 Different forms of funerals c. 1.3 Abrahamic Religions d. 1.4 Indian Aborigines e. 1.5 Sikhism f. 1.6 Zoroastrianism 12. Chapter 2: Funerals and Ecology a. 2.1 Advantages of funerals. b. 2.2 Literature review: The environmental impact of activities after life: Life cycle assessment of funerals By Elisabeth Keijzer. c. 2.3 Alternate Cremation methods. d. 2.4 Future funeral methods. 13. Chapter 3: Economic behind funerals a. 3.1 Literature review: Can You Afford to Die? Estimates of Expenditure on Rituals and Impact on Ecology by Archana Kaushik b. 3.2 Average income levels in India c. 3.3 Start-ups breathe life into India’s funeral services d. 3.4 A case study of Varanasi Death hostels. e. 3.5 Timber Mafia - and its role in the funeral business 14. Chapter 4: Funerals and the public a. 4.1 People living near a crematorium/ burial ground. i. 4.1.1 Shirvane gaon crematorium case study ii. 4.1.2 Survey analysis + design conclusions b. 4.2 Families and friends that come to cremate/ bury their loved ones i. 4.2.1 Preconceived notions of a crematorium/ burial ground. ii. 4.2.2 Reported cases of abuse experienced by crematorium users. iii. 4.2.3 Design conclusions c. 4.3 Crematorium/ burial ground workers i. 4.3.1 Recorded cases of lack of infrastructure, historically during pandemics. ii. 4.3.2 Literature review: The Silence of the Archives: Why the Grave Diggers of the Bubonic Plague are Unremembered by Sohini Chattopadhyay iii. 4.3.3 Literature review: Do mortuary workers come last in the COVID-19 fight. By Sohini Chattopadhyay iv. 4.3.4 Case study: A look at the daily activities of a crematorium worker during COVID -19. v. 4.3.5 Design conclusions 18

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Contents

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

129 129 133 137 141 142 150 160 166 174 180 187 187 191 193 197 199

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1. Chapter 5: Site introduction a. 5.1 About Mathura, Vrindavan b. 5.2 Widows of Vrindavan c. 5.3 Literature review: Dignity in death – ensuring a proper cremation for the widows 2. Chapter 6: Case studies a. 6.1 Public crematorium for GKD charity trust, Coimbatore b. 6.2 Ashwinikumar crematorium, Surat c. 6.3 Mahaprasthanam crematorium, Hyderabad d. 6.4 Igualada cemetery, Catalonia, Spain e. 6.5 Islamic cemetery, Altach, Austria f. 6.6 Crematorium siesegem, Aalst, Belgium 3. Chapter 7: Site study + Conclusion a. 7.1 Site Study b. 7.2 Formulating design brief c. 7.3 Conclusion 4. Bibliography 5. Plagiarism report

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Religions and the evolution of their funeral traditions Topic covered in the chapter

Abstract

Origins of Religion and their funerary customs • Trace the origins of the religions namely: - The Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Islam and Judaism) - The Hindu and its sister religions (Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism) - Zoroastrianism - Sikhism • How climate/location influenced funeral customs, when religions were in their early stages of formations? • Study of the basic history (Rise and fall of civilisation and immigration into Indian subcontinent) • Religious mythology and culture change after immigrating to India (Climatic, geographic and historical study)

The chapter looks into different religions and speculates why their funeral customs vary. Investigations were made on the geographical, climatic and idealistic views of the religions at the places of their origins and how they changed if and when they entered the Indian subcontinent. It then looks into the detailed funeral traditions, to keep an understanding of the required spaces and durations of each step of a funeral ritual. Every religion in its time has represented these rituals and their mythology with the help of art and music, these realms of representation and storytelling are also explored to get a sense of the talked about spaces and feelings. The analysis of all this, makes sure of the in depth knowledge and requirements of each religion, while maintaining the understanding of no designed space succumbs to misinformation or mislead people who visit for a ritualistic experience.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Evolution of funerals / ways of disposal of bodies. - Disposal of bodies (general) - Funeral customs (extinct/existing) - Relation of Music and Art to funerals and - funerary customs

In Norse mythology, a prominent tradition is that of the ship burial, where the deceased was laid in a boat, or a stone ship, and given grave offerings in accordance with his earthly status and profession, sometimes including sacrificed slaves. Afterwards, piles of stone and soil were usually laid on top of the remains in order to create a tumulus.

1.1 Literature review

Ways to dispose human bodies.

Earth deposit Earth deposit usually means the burial of the deceased, in a hole in the earth. Burial or interment is a method of final disposition wherein a dead person or animal is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.

Ways of disposal of human dead bodies Cannibalism It is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. (source: (1981). "The Evolution and Dynamics of Intraspecific Predation". Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics. ) Sub - Aerial deposit subaerial (literally "under the air"), has been used since 1833, notably in geology and botany, to describe events or features that are formed, located, or taking place immediately on or near the Earth's land surface.

Preservation Preservation is done to the deceased who are of religious or political value. Their bodies are preserved as a symbolic representation of their values. Another recent method of preservation is for scientific reasons, where preservation is done to study the bodies for research. Embalming is the art and science of preserving human or animal remains by treating them (in its modern form with chemicals) to forestall decomposition.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

It was a very common place practice before the establishment of religion and better cremation methods, to dump bodies in outside; or to leave them at the site of death. This allowed for an Aerobic decomposition which allowed for less methane gas production and also served as nutrition for Scavenger birds/ animals.

Typical embalming fluid contains a mixture of formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, methanol, humectants and wetting agents, and other solvents that are used. The formaldehyde content generally ranges from 5-35%, and the methanol content may range from 9-56%. Environmentalists disapprove of embalming because of the harmful chemicals involved and their interactions with the environment. Recently, more eco-friendly embalming methods have become available, including formaldehyde-free mixtures of chemicals.

Another form of burials were in the form of cave burials, which were observed in Malaysia, Asia, showing importance to how the buried were of cultural importance. These burials were in jars, encasing their bodies and caves, with paintings, of the community’s hand prints. References: (1981). “The Evolution and Dynamics of Intraspecific Predation”. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics. “Embalming - Information About Embalming”. www. funeralhelper.org. 7 February 2017 22

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Water deposit Water was another way for cremating the dead as seas were seen as a way to the unknown, and in some beliefs the way to another realm or an afterlife.

1.2 Literature review

Different forms of funerals Burial : Many modern religions nowadays practice burial, where the body of the deceased is put 6 feet under the ground. Practiced by the Jews, Christians and Muslims-placing the corpses inside the earth in Coffins (wooden boxes / containers). The first step, regardless of what type of disposition that people choose, is bathing and staff, family and friends, but also for dignity and respect of the deceased. A human body starts to decay immediately after death occurs and bathing and disinfecting are necessary.

Cannibalism : Endocannibalism is a practice of cannibalism in one's own locality or community. Endocannibalism has also been used to describe the consumption of relics in a mortuary context. Herodotus, a Greek historian in 400 BC, mentions the Indian tribe of the Callatiae for their practice of funerary cannibalism. Endocannibalism or Funerary cannibalism causes many diseases, Kuru is a type of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) caused by prions that are found in humans. Human prion diseases come in sporadic, genetic and infectious forms. Kuru was the first infectious human prion disease discovered amongst the remains of such tribes.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Preservation : Preservation techniques of cremation are still followed to this day for preserving bodies of religious heads or bodies deemed important for scientific use. The Roman Catholic church preserves certain body parts in their preservation, after injecting chemicals in the parts, they are sealed in vacuum cells which are then displayed or stored and are termed ‘Relics’ Mummification, a sophisticated method of preservation of the dead bodies, by removing the internal organs, dehydrating the bodies and wrapping and covering with linen cloth-practiced by ancient Egyptians is one of the most popular documented preservation cremation techniques.

Disposal for carnivorous animals/birds Also termed Sky-burials, the bodies of the dead are left open to be taken over by the elements, natural decomposition through soil, air and animals. Birds and animals would attack the parts of the dead bodies and eat the flesh, scavenging the bodies letting no pollution of surroundings and nourishment for animals and birds. Practiced by Zoroastrians and Tibetan buddhists, historically but with the dwindling numbers of these animals, the number of such cremations has died down.

Cremation : Practiced by the Romans, Greeks and Hindusburning the corpses by fire, gas or electricityburning the soft tissues and the most parts of the skeleton / bones-The cremation remains, are known as “Cremains”, containing larger pieces of the parts of the skeleton / bones, which would be ground into ash mechanically-The ashes would be stored in ‘Urns’ and / or sprinkled on landscapes, rivers and oceans.

References: trans. A. D. Godley 1920 “Kuru prions and sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease prions have equivalent transmission properties in transgenic and wild-type mice”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://gangapollution.weebly.com/death-rituals.html 23

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Immersion Immersion is the method where the deceased’s body is immersed in a water body. This method is used in the cases of deaths of military and naval personnel and in case of deaths in ships on Long Voyages. Another way of immersion is a boat cremation in which the dead body would be kept on a boat and left to get drowned into the sea and the dead body, would get perished in the deep sea bed. River Ganga sees upto 35,000 bodies dumped yearly, as water burials in the most holy river in Hindu mythology.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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1.3

Reception of a victorious general of the Assyrian Empire in Mesopotamia. Stefano Bianchetti.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Abrahamic religions The Abrahamic religions, also referred to collectively as the world of Abrahamism, are a group of Semitic-originated religions that claim descent from the Judaism of the ancient Israelites and the worship of the God of Abraham. The Abrahamic religions are monotheistic, with the term deriving from the patriarch Abraham (a major figure described both in the Tanakh and the Quran, recognized by Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others). The three Abrahamic religions trace their origins to the first two sons of Abraham. For Jews and Christians it is his second son Isaac and for Muslims, his eldest son Ishmael.

About Mesopotamia

Abrahamic religions spread globally through Christianity being adopted by the Roman Empire in the 4th century and Islam by the Islamic empires from the 7th century. Today the Abrahamic religions are one of the major divisions in comparative religion (along with Indian, Iranian, and East Asian religions). The major Abrahamic religions in chronological order of founding are Judaism (the base of the other two religions) in the 7th century BCE, Christianity in the 1st century CE, and Islam in the 7th century CE.

Mesopotamia is located in the region now known as the Middle East, which includes parts of southwest Asia and lands around the eastern Mediterranean Sea. It is part of the Fertile Crescent, an area also known as “Cradle of Civilization” for the number of innovations that arose from the early societies in this region, which are among some of the earliest known human civilizations on earth.

Mesopotamia is a region of southwest Asia in the Tigris and Euphrates river system that benefited from the area’s climate and geography to host the beginnings of human civilization. Its history is marked by many important inventions that changed the world, including the concept of time, math, the wheel, sailboats, maps and writing. Mesopotamia is also defined by a changing succession of ruling bodies from different areas and cities that seized control over a period of thousands of years.

Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are the Abrahamic religions with the greatest numbers of adherents. Abrahamic religions with fewer adherents include the Druze faith (sometimes considered a part of Islam), the Baháʼí Faith, and Rastafari. 26

Climate, topography and forests all point towards the fact that wooden cremations are not viable, and support the use of wooden coffins in the place. Coupled along with the ideas of Judaism, Islam and Christianity, who believe in the idea of the dead resting, till the day of the arrival of the messiah or a final judgement day, only to be risen from their coffins; also add to the reasons for burials.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

(Left) Map of Mesopotamia highlighting the fertile areas of the religion and the fresh water rivers that flowed in its kingdom.

References: Fiaz Fazli, Crescent magazine, Srinagar, September 2009, p. 42. “Philosophy of Religion”. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Archived from the original on 21 July 2010. Retrieved 24 June 2010. C.J. Adams Classification of religions: Geographical. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2007 Archived 14 December 2007 Atzmon, G.; Hao, L.; Pe’er, I.; et al. (June 2010). “Abraham’s children in the genome era: major Jewish diaspora populations comprise distinct genetic clusters with shared Middle Eastern Ancestry”. Am. J. Hum. Genet. PMID 20560205. Archived 30 May 2016 Israelite religion has its origins in Canaanite religions of the Bronze Age, it became distinct from other Canaanite religions in Iron Age I due to a focus on the monolatristic worship of Yahweh. Judaism likely became fully monotheistic in the 6th century BCE (Iron Age II). Archived 30 May 2016. “Abrahamic Religion”. Christianity: Details about... Christianity Guide. Archived from the original on 30 September 2008. Retrieved 19 September 2009. “Why ‘Abrahamic’?”. Lubar Institute for Religious Studies at U of Wisconsin. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2012.

References: Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization. Paul Kriwaczek. Ancient Mesopotamia. Leo Oppenheim. Ancient Mesopotamia: This History, Our History. University of Chicago. Mesopotamia 8000-2000 B.C. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 30,000 Years of Art. Editors at Phaidon. 27

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Conclusions from the analysis:

Abrahamic religions origins and evolution in the Indian subcontinent

Judaism

TIMELINE

700 BCE

100 CE

Forma�on of Judaism This was the era of crea�on and spread of Judaism, origina�ng from early Mesopotamia

Bnei Menashe Recent Jew converts residing in the state of Mizoram and Manipur

1970s

Early Jew se�lers Star�ng with the Cochin Jews and Nagercoil jews who ﬁrst entered India and se�led in Kerala, Nagercoil and Kanyakumari

Baghdadi Jews They ﬂourished under the Mughal dynasty and under early Bri�sh empires.

1800 CE

Chennai Jews Arrived in India in the city of Madras and were from the regions of Spain, Portugal and later Britain

1600 CE

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Introduction Judaism created in the Mediterranean around 1800 CE. All cores of Judaism include: • The Tanukah - called also the Old testament. Includes the chapters of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuternomy. • God - Monotheistic belief in only one God. The world to come - No particular definitions of Heaven or hell. Heaven is decribed as the home of Gods and hell a place for the damned. A belief of afterlife as something similar to the life on earth. The belief in Philanthropy is encouraged and is said to add up to a good karma. • The Messiah - Jews believe that the arrival of the messiah, will start the messianic period. He will rebuild the Holy Temple in Israel, end war, hunger and install peace over the earth. Resurrection of every Jew; thence jews are buried, so can arise when the messiah commands. The messiah is also said to make a Heaven, Earth and Hell. • The Tamund - Known as the 2nd book in Jewish holy books, 38 volumes that commentary on itself, debates, history, philosophy and many important topics, jewish laws and the ways of life.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Jewish people - 2 major divisions • Ashkenazi - Central and eastern europe. Speak the Yiddish language. • Sephardic - Spanish Jews. Speak Ladino, a mixture Hebrew and Spanish. Other different smaller community of jews over the earth. The synagogue - The place of holy worship with the presence of torah scroll. Has a Rabbi (head priest).

References: Living Judaism. The Complete Guide to Jewish Belief, Tradition, and Practice by Wayne D. Dosick Shloshah Asar Ikkarim, the “Thirteen Fundamental Principles” of the Jewish faith, Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon (“Maimonides” also known as “The Rambam”). History of Religious Ideas. by Mircea Eliade History of the Jews. by Paul Johnson Judaism A Very Short Introduction by Norman Solomon Judaism An Introduction by Oliver Leaman No Other Gods Emergent Monotheism in Israel by Robert Karl Gnuse Encyclopedia of Religion by Lindsay Jones Vol 7 The Blackwell Companion to Judaism by Jacob Neusner, Alan Avery-Peck 29

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Abrahamic religions origins and evolution in the Indian subcontinent

Christianity

TIMELINE

100 CE

Forma�on and spread of Chris�anity Chris�anity starts in the region of Mesopotamia and is the second abrahmic religion

Bri�sh Chris�anity The ﬁrst Bri�sh chris�ans se�le in India, ﬁrst entering through already westernised areas in the South. Later into Eastern side of India

Arrival in India Chtris�anity ﬁrst arrived in Kerala, who are descendents of the syriyan order. And spreads to other regions in the south western India

600 CE

1500 CE

• • • •

Christianity is known as the largest religion on earth with over 2.2 billion followers on earth. Popular beliefs or sects of christianity are namely, Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox. Christians are named after Jesus Christ, who’s teachings are followed by their followers. • Faith of Jesus - emulation in compassion and empathy towards everyone. • Faith of sacrifice by jesus and his resurrection the reason for a new life on earth.

Repentance of sins is essential. Don’t be hypocritical. Don’t judge others. The Kingdom of God is near. It’s not the rich and powerful—but the weak and poor—who will inherit this kingdom.

Christians believe that there is a life after earthly death. While the actual nature of this life is not known, Christians believe that many spiritual experiences in this life help to give them some idea of what eternal life will be like.

The sacred text of Christianity is the Holy Bible. The Christian Bible has two parts: the Old Testament which is essentially the Hebrew scriptures of Jesus' time; and the New Testament which contains writings about Jesus Christ and about the early church. The four gospels (a word meaning ‘good news') of the New Testament are accounts of Jesus' life and teaching, of his death and resurrection.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

New Testament that borrows from the hebrew transcript of the Jews, with the added journals of biblical activities and and the teachings of jesus, called the gospel. The christians follow the trinity of • The God - the creator and destroyer of the universe • The son - The son of God, that is Jesus • The holy spirit - a transdimensional being that is believed to guide, comfort, and encourage Christians Christian traditions of birth, marriage and death are significant stages that bring christians together as one. The goal for every christian is the to find salvation, which the eternal life in Gods abode, in heaven. It is believed that Jesus Christ will present himself at the end of time ushering the final judgement and granting eternal bliss and the creation of a new heaven and earth. Jesus christs’ teachings are • Love God. • Love your neighbor as yourself. • Forgive others who have wronged you. • Love your enemies. • Ask God for forgiveness of your sins. • Jesus is the Messiah and was given the authority to forgive others.

References: BBC.com, About christianity, an introduction. learnreligions.com, introduction to christianity. 33

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Introduction

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Abrahamic religions origins and evolution in the Indian subcontinent

Islam

TIMELINE

500 CE 700 CE

Forma�on and spread of Islam Islam is the third and ﬁnal religion of the abrahamic religions and starts in Mesotpotamia and spreads over the Middle east.

Mughal Empire Islam spread to the North India along with to the East with the incoming of the Delhi Sultanate, star�ng from Ghunds conquests.

Arrival in India Early arrivals saw Middle east traders coming to India and se�ng up early mosques for prayers for their �mes of stay. Majorly in the areas of Malabar, Gujarat and Kerala.

650 CE 1075 CE

1200 CE

institutions both as a religious duty and to secure the blessings associated with charity. • Fasting (sawm). During the daylight hours of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, all healthy adult Muslims are required to abstain from food and drink. During Ramadan they share the hunger and thirst of the needy as a reminder of the religious duty to help those less fortunate. • Pilgrimage (hajj). Every Muslim whose health and finances permit it must make at least one visit to the holy city of Mecca, in present-day Saudi Arabia. The Ka’ba, a cubical structure covered in black embroidered hangings, is at the center of the Haram Mosque in Mecca. Muslims believe that it is the house Abraham (Ibrahim in Arabic) built for God, and face in its direction (qibla) when they pray.

Islam is one sees many similarities in its beliefs from Christians and both are rumoured to be flowered and founded in the same time as each other. Islam is a monotheistic religion, follows Allah, the creator of heaven and earth. Muslims believe that Allah’s form cannot be reproduced or painted on anything physical hence, his writings/ teachings are what the muslims pray to. Holy Quran is the sacred text for muslims. Muslims bury their deceased, very much similar to the christians and jews. Muslims have six main beliefs. • Belief in Allah as the one and only God • Belief in angels • Belief in the holy books • Belief in the Prophets e.g. Adam, Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Dawud (David), Isa (Jesus). Muhammad is the final prophet. • Belief in the Day of judgment. The day when the life of every human being will be assessed to decide whether they go to heaven or hell. • Belief in Predestination. That Allah has the knowledge of all that will happen. Muslims believe that this doesn't stop human beings making free choices.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Five Pillars are the core beliefs and practices of Islam: • Profession of Faith (shahada). The belief that “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God” is central to Islam. • Prayer (salat). Muslims pray facing Mecca five times a day: at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset, and after dark. Prayer includes a recitation of the opening chapter (sura) of the Qur’an, and is sometimes performed on a small rug or mat used expressly for this purpose. Muslims can pray individually at any location or together in a mosque, where a leader in prayer (imam) guides the congregation. Men gather in the mosque for the noonday prayer on Friday; women are welcome but not obliged to participate. • Alms (zakat). In accordance with Islamic law, Muslims donate a fixed portion of their income to community members in need. Many rulers and wealthy Muslims build mosques, drinking fountains, hospitals, schools, and other 37

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Introduction

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Illustrated map showing the extent of Indus Valley Civilisation during its peak.

1.4

Funeral traditions of the Indus valley civilisation

Literature review

Indian Aborigines (Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism) their origins in the Indian subcontinent

The burials in the Harappan period were all in brick or stone lined rectangular or oval pits. The body was usually interred clothed shrouded or in a wooden coffin in the north south direction in a straight direction. It was important that the body did not come into contact with the ground. The only evidence of wooden coffins is the presence of a wooden stain in the body of the corpse. The bodies of the individuals were usually buried with their jewelry which usually consisted of bangles made from shell, steatite beads, etc, and the men usually wore earrings. Copper mirrors have been found only amongst the bodies of the females which show a specificity of grave goods by gender.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Indian abborigines saw their starts are small tribal groups that settled near the sindh area, later to come together and form the now known as Indus Valley civilisation (IVC). The IVC was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE. Together with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia,

Mohenjo daro is one of the biggest cities excavated in this civilization but it has no cemeteries. But there were a few bodies that were found scattered throughout the city in disarray. They are referred to as the “tragedy sites”. There are 5 tragedy sites found all over Mohenjo daro with a total of 42 skeletons.The causes of these burials have been hypothesized due to loss of civic rules and order in the city or an invasion of some kind. But these clearly do not tie into the energy expenditure model.

it was one of three early civilisations of the Near East and South Asia, and of the three, the most widespread, its sites spanning an area stretching from northeast Afghanistan, through much of Pakistan, and into western and northwestern India. It flourished in the basins of the Indus River, which flows through the length of Pakistan, and along a system of perennial, mostly monsoon-fed, rivers that once coursed in the vicinity of the seasonal Ghaggar-Hakra river in northwest India and eastern Pakistan. 40

TIMELINE

1750 BCE

1600 1400 BCE

Pre Vedic Period Includes Indus Valley civiliza�on and other smaller indian tribes before the Vedas were wri�en

Late Classical Period Classical Puranic age of Hinduism

Vedic Period Ini�a�on of early texts of Vedas Indo Aryan prophets travel and preach around the subcon�nent

Epic and Early Puranic period/ Late Vedic period Classic / Golden age of hinduism Establishment of Gupta Period Hindu philosophy Shaivism and Vaishism

Hinduism and its Sister religions Forma�on of Hinduism and then the split of Buddhism and Jainism

800 200 BCE

650 CE 1150 CE

200 BCE 500 CE

With the passage of time, the hindu faith along with its sister religions, namely Buddhism and Jainism, slowly moved away from the Sindh areas. A trend of movement can be traced through the alluvial patch and along the major rivers of Ganga, Narmada and deltas of Brahmaputra. These places had thick forest cover and provided fertile land for more cultivation for growth of crops and other timber. This proved easy for cremations, with high supply of wood and plenty of water bodies to scatter ashes. Coupled along with the belief of considering rivers as holy, which allowed for expansion of empires and spreading on civilisation further add to the act. The spread of Hindu empires was along the areas in Tropical dry deciduous, Moist deciduous, where lot of wood was already available and also can be grown.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Subtropical climate along the same region, allows for temperatures that are high enough for cultivation paired with favourable water bodies in vicinity.

(left) Maps showing the spread of human civilization from the early Vedic period to the Late Vedic period. 42

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Tracing the evolution of Indian Aborigines and investigating the change in funeral customs.

Introduction

Hinduism follows many Gods, the three main deities called the holy trinity are • Brahma - The creator of the world and everything on it. • Vishnu - The preserver and saviour of dharma. • Shiva - The destroyer of worlds.

Considered to be a 3500 year old religion. One of the oldest religions to exist in the modern times. The descendants of Indus Valley civilisation along with several nomadic tribes are credited to be the founding members of Hinduism 7 core beliefs • Belief in one Universal soul - called the Brahman • Belief in one immortal soul that is in the cycle of rebirths. Transmigrates through the system of Karma. • The belief in Karma - The power of past deeds that influence a souls incarnation. • Belief in Moksha - The idea of Moksha and to be one with God in the heavens. • Belief in vedas - All 4 of the vedas as the Holy books. • Belief in the cyclic life - the cyclic life talk about 4 stages in each cycle. Krita yuga Treta Yuga Dvapara Yuga Kali Yuga • Belief in one's Dharma - the belief of one's duty and its need to be fulfilled.

4 denominations of Hindus are • Vaishnavas - The followers of Vishnu • Shaivas - the followers of Shiva • Smartas - followers of the religious texts and their understanding • Shaktas - followers who believe Devi as the supreme power in the universe. Hindu caste system undergoes as • Brahmins - the intellectuals • Kshatriyas - the warriors • Vaishyas - the merchants/businessmen • Shudras - the labourers Initially the vedas never mentioned of Caste system to be implemented by birth, people fitting any categories needs were allowed to be a part of that caste, the system was proposed to have all the building blocks of a functioning society and the required essential contributing members. Later after the publishing of Manusmriti, which claimed Brahmins as the lord of castes and enforced the word of caste by birth, was the whole system started and implemented.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

4 vedas are credited as the first holy books of Hinduism. • Rig veda - talks about praise and discusses ideas of truth, universe, marriage and others. • Yajur Veda - Sacrificial rites and other important rituals. • Sam Veda - Praising God through various hymns and rituals. • Atharva veda - Book of chants and spells. Upanishads, wrote after the vedas, talk about philosophies and tries to answer questions of life and death. Puranas, Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana and Mahabharata are other holy books. 4 needed traits to break free from the cycle of rebirth and be one with God Dhama - Following ones destiny. Artha - Finding a meaning of life. Kama - Commitment to one’s dharma Moksha - Combining all three above points to attain Moksha.

References: Hinduism: A Very Short Introduction by Kim The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism by Gavin Flood Hinduism Today: An Introduction by Stephen Jacobs Hinduism For Dummies by Amrutur V. Srinivasan, 43

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Hinduism

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

One of the wall murals in Ajanta caves.

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Buddhism Introduction

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

500 BCE is termed as the origin for Buddhism. Buddhism has many parallels to Jainism and are called sister religions. It draws its initial roots from Vedas, which serve as one of the father religions for Buddhism and Jainism. Siddhartha Gautama is the main spiritual leader of Buddhism and is credited with creating buddhism as its known today. He was once one of the Shrimanas, spiritual leaders who spread the word of Vedas, but Gautama made certain changes according to his learnings; birthing Buddhism. 4 core Beliefs / Universal truths • Suffering exists in the form of sensuality, hatred, greed etc. • Origin of this suffering the source of these sufferings. • An end of this suffering, to believe this suffering can be ended by nirvana. • How to end this suffering following the 8 fold path. The 8 fold path to attain nirvana: • Right view : A cycle of rebirth. • Right resolve : To give up on sensualities, greed and hatred etc • Right speech : Politeness and humility. • Right conduct : Having no physical desire and hurting other humans and animals. • Right livelihood : living on essential possessions and give up a life of excess. • Right efforts : to stop impure thoughts. • Right mindfulness : aware of thoughts / impermanence. • Right concentration : this is supposed to be a culmination of above points and about the art of discipline. The 4 truths and the 8 fold path culminate together and help a person attain nirvana. This stops the cycle of rebirth, and the soul can break from the cycle of constant rebirths. No ideal definitions of nirvana exists in the buddhist texts as any one attaining nirvana is free from the physical worlds. India, although the origin of Buddhism but less than 0.7% of today's population is buddhist.

References: What the Buddha Taught by Walpola Sri Rahula The Life of the Buddha by Bhikkhu Ñanamoli In the Buddha’s Words by Fajer Al-Kaisi Buddhism For Dummies by Jonathan Landaw 47

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The cosmic map of the universe, according to Jain faith

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Introduction

Loka - The existence of the three realms of the heaven, earth and hell. The idea of these spaces still looked as places caged in the cycle of rebirth. Jainism has 2 sects under them - the Digambaras and the Svetambaras.

A jain is someone who follows the words of the Tirthankaras. Mahavir is credited with putting forth the main principles of jainism and is considered the 24th Tirthankara. Jainism also flowered alongside Buddhism and Hinduism.

There doesn’t exist one true book of Jainism, but the most important one of them all are Agam Sutras.

The religion exists in its 8 core ideas: The existence of 3 jewels namely : Right faith that includes the 7 truths Jiwa - the soul in the living. Ajiwa - the lack of a soul in the non living Asrava Banraha - The existence of karma Samvara - Stopping the cycle of karma Nirjana - To denounce all karmic sources. Moksha - separating from the karmic world and the cycle of rebirth. Right knowledge of knowing the words of the Mahavir. Right behaviour: Ahimsa - the path of nonviolence Satya - speaking the truth Asteya - not stealing Brahmacharya - being faithful or celibate in ones life.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Aparigraha - not clinging to physical possessions. Anekantavada - the belief of no opinion is correct; various opinions come together to form the truth. Samsara and Moksha - The idea of the physical world and the idea of being set free from it. Karma - the balance of deeds and how it clings on to the soul. Jain Monks - The people who believe and practice all the sects of the religion and given the highest respect in the community. Regular jains - Followers of jainism, who are given relaxed rules, but are to follow them, for a better rebirth.

References: Lindsay Jones - Encyclopedia of Religion Volumes 1,3,6,7,10 Sherry Fohr - Jainism A Guide for the Perplexed Paul Dundas - The Jains 51

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Jainism

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1.5

Sikhism

TIMELINE

1469 1577 CE

Sikhism is founded Sikhism is founded by Guru Nanak in Amritsar, which is also declared the holy city for sikhs in 1577

Par��on Once called the Sikh kingdom, is divided into parts of Pakistan and India, causing mul�ple cases of communial violence

Ini�a�on of Khalsa brotherhood Guru Ranjit Singh es�balishes the khalsa brotherhood and introduces the Guru Gobind Singh.

1699 CE

1947 CE

serves langar to any person who walks into the Gurdwara. The preferred funeral process in Sikhism is the way of cremation by immolating the body in fire.

Founded 500 years ago is considered one of the most modern religions in India. 2% of India's population follows sikhism, and 60% of the sikh population are concentrated in Punjab. The sikhs look up to 10 Gurus, who are the looked as the main religious deities to follow. Their belief is on the one true god, who is said to share amongst all religions. Sikhs can hence be considered a Monotheistic religion. Guru Naranah, the first guru born in 1469 AD is credited with the creation of the religion and its guiding principles. The 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Sai ended the cycle of Human gurus and wrote the Guru Granth Sahib, which is considered the holy text of the sikhs. The key beliefs and components of Sikhism are: The belief that all temples and mosques and churches pray up to the same God and any man regardless of any religion, worships the same god and is to be treated equally. Reincarnation and Karma guide the circle of life, and doing good deeds is essential to reincarnate in a better life. The belief in Maya Maya is the illusion caused by greed, lust and other negative emotions. Maya is said to misguide innocent men and women against the path of good deeds.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The 3 pillars • Naam Japo - meditation and praying to the Wahe Guru (one true god) • Kirat kauni - to be hardworking. • Wand Chakhna - To share and be philanthropic • Seva - selfless sacrifice. The Khalsa, started by Guru Gobind Sai to give an identity to the sikhs and establish them as members of one cast and religion. They follow the 5Ks of the Khalsa command. Guru Granth Sahib - It contains the writings of all their religious leaders and including excerpts from other holy books such as the Quran, Vedas etc. This book is considered the current Guru for the Sikhs The Gurdwara - it is defined by having the guru granth sahib in its premises, a prayer hall for anyone from any religion along with a place that

References: Sikhism funeral rituals, Antam Sanskar, Learn-religions.com Mela Singh, Singh Satha, Central Gurudwara, Glasgow Guru Granth Sahib Lindsay Jones, Encyclopedia of Religion Daljeet Singh - Essentials of Sikhism (1994), Sewa Singh Kalsi - Sikhism (Religions of the World) (2004), Nikky-Guninder Kaur Kaur Singh - Sikhism An Introduction, Sikhism A Very Short Introduction - Nesbitt, Eleanor 55

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Introduction

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1.6

Zoroastrianism

TIMELINE

Zoroastrianism is founded 1500 - Although no concrete proof 1200 BCE of an actual �meline on its crea�on. In Modern day Iran, Zoroastrianism was founded as a religion.

First records of Parsis in India By 600 CE, Muslim invaders had started taking over Iran and Parsis had to ﬂee to other coutries as refugees by 800CE.

First Parsis in India Mul�ple records show Parsis had been a part of the trade routes and had come to India way before 500 CE

500 CE

600 CE

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Introduction Zoroastrianism is an ancient Persian religion that may have originated as early as 4,000 years ago. Arguably the world’s first monotheistic faith, it’s one of the oldest religions still in existence. The prophet Zoroaster (Zarathrustra in ancient Persian) is regarded as the founder of Zoroastrianism, which is arguably the world’s oldest monotheistic faith. Zoroastrianism shaped one of the ancient world’s largest empires—the mighty Persia Empire. It was the state religion of three major Persian dynasties. Parsi are followers of Zoroastrianism in India. According to Parsi tradition, a group of Iranian Zoroastrians emigrated from Persia to escape religious persecution by the Muslim majority after the Arab conquest. Experts speculate that the group sailed across the Arabian Sea and landed in Gujarat, a state in western India, sometime between 785 and 936 A.D.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Parsi are an ethnic minority in India and Pakistan. Today there are about 60,000 Parsi in India and 1,400 in Pakistan. Belief of Zoroastrians are: • Fire—along with water—are seen as symbols of purity in Zoroastrian religion. • Avestha is considered the religious book for Parsis, that has the most accounts of Zarasthura, who’s lfe is mostly unknown outisde of the book. • Ahura Mazda is the name of the supreme power parsis pray to in their designated paraying spaces. • Zoroastrian places of worship are sometimes called fire temples. Each fire temple contains an altar with an eternal flame that burns continuously and is never extinguished. • Zoroastrians gave their dead “sky burials.” They built circular, flat-topped towers called dakhmas, or towers of silence. There corpses were exposed to the elements—and local vultures—until the bones were picked clean and bleached. • Asha is the name for the good and Dhruj for evil.

References: Zoroaster; BBC. The Genetic Legacy of Zoroastrianism in Iran and India: Insights into Population Structure, Gene Flow, and Selection; The American Journal of Human Genetics. The ancient Persian god that may be at the heart of ‘Game of Thrones’; The Washington Post. Mazda-Go 3-wheeled trucks (1931); Mazda. The Last of the Zoroastrians. TIME. Zoroastrianism: Zorostudies. 59

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Decomposition: An Easter Story, New York times, illustration by JooHee Yoon.

Funerals and Ecology

Introduction When a body is cremated, it releases huge amounts of smoke and ash are produced from the body and the wood from being burned. Simultaneously, when a body is buried it is allowed to decay in an environment of almost no oxygen; the byproducts released in this case are generally invisible, which is why many people consider burials are more natural form of a funeral. The parsees take it a step further and allow their dead to be consumed by vultures, which can point to show that these funeral methods are the most effective.

Contents of the chapter • To understand the waste produced during different types of funerals, cremation and burials • To analyse the positive and negative impacts of cremations/burials with respect to nature. • Ecological relations - Natural resource requirement, for a traditional cremation/ burial. - The capability of the environment to provide for these cremations/ funerals. • Newer ecologically sustainable funeral practices, that are currently in practice or are predicted to be in use.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

This chapter aims at looking at these claims, and looking at them through a statistical and scientific lense. To analyse the truth in these claims and to disprove or add to them. The study largely compares cremations and burials, pitting them against each other to compare not just the harms but the goods it contributed to the environment. Also seen in the chapter are the parts to see how much of the ecology is spent for the funeral industry, its fallacies and shortfalls in maintaining a sustainable approach. To contrast this, a study of approaches at the micro level where individual cremation and burials are sought to be made more eco-friendly and other newer methods of funerals that are much more considerate of the surrounding ecology. 63

It contributes to industrialization. Forests encompass large areas of land which can be used to build manufacturing plants and additional infrastructure. All these are all indications that a country or community is developing and becoming industrialized. Consequently, there can also be a boom of the economy.

2.1 Literature Review

It provides food for animals by allowing farmers and agriculturalists who feed animals by sending them to forests are also benefiting from deforestation. By using the method of animal grazing for deforestation, they not only expand their land areas but also are able to keep their livestock healthy and well-fed.

Advantages of Deforestation, where the wood is re-purposed for cremations

Wood unsuitable for other conventional uses, can be repurposed for cremations. Also sometimes scraped wood, like formworks for construction are also used for cremations (which is not suitable/ advised).

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

It is a means of livelihood. One of the advantages of deforestation is its being a source of income for farmers who cut down trees to be made into coal and be sold as fuel. Moreover, trees from forests are also made into construction and building materials to build houses. This helps not to provide shelter to people but also to boon the construction industry. Another use of deforestation in livelihood is through conversion of forests into agricultural or farm lands to be used by farmers to plant crops. It makes expansion possible. Another benefit of deforestation is the transformation of forests into paved roads to transport goods and commodities to other places and meet the demands of consumers. Also, it can be used by industries for different kind of businesses such as infrastructure, construction and theme parks. It can be a source of materials. Deforestation results to availability of trees that can be made into timber and be used for construction. Aside from this, other parts of the trees have numerous uses such as sap used to become paper, toothpick, tissue and food, among others.

Reference: The future of working, Leadership and careers, Keith Miller 64

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It offers more job opportunities. To make clearing of the forest possible, man power is needed. This does not only include engineers but also skilled workers who are given the chance to earn and provide for their families. Also, those who convert some parts of the forest and convert them to farm lands become agriculturists and entrepreneurs. People who invest money to create theme parks or tourist attractions employ workers to build and operate their businesses.

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2.2

A prototype of a Solar crematorium in Ahmedabad, can massively reduce the carbon footprints of a crematorium, but like many newer cremations technology it ahs seen very less acceptance.

Literature Review

Advantages of Cremations and burials Positives impacts of Cremation

Positives of Burials

Cremations are less environmentally harmful, when compared to burials.

Although traditional burials are seen as harmful towards the environment but small changes in it can be really helpful in providing a close to traditional funeral while being considerate of the environment.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Cremations have scope of being improved on to lessen the ecological harm, by using different fuel that produce less carbon, using electricity or even solar energy.

Substituting the traditional materials for coffins, to wood that decomposes faster and ignoring the use if plastics or other materials involved in burials, drastically reduce the ecological toll.

The charcoal derived from the cremations act as filters that help clean the water bodies they are dumped into.

A direct burial without embalming or displaying of the body, also speeds up the decay process. A cemetery with traditional burials makes the ground unusable for further burials. BUt a place of greener burials can be again repurposed to allow for more burials as the decomposition time passes.

Cremations are extremely helpful in the times of major pandemics, where the burning of the deceased body helps eliminate all possible viruses or other organisms. The ease of conducting a cremation in a neutral or sterile zone also helps in isolating the spread of the said disease/infection. For cremations, smaller changes in the ways of cremation can go a long way to reducing the ecological harm. 65

x2000

50-60 million trees are burned annually in India for cremations, releasing about

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CO2

Cremations can be made sustainable while still being true to

the reiligious traditions, by

8 million tons of CO2

substituting the fuel source from wood to other means, some of the

and other greenhouse gases and toxins into the atmosphere, equal to that of 2000 cars

by using electricity, CNG, cow dung or even agricultural waste. most common ones are,

= 500kg of wood is required to burn one body in

accordance to a traditional hindu cremation, equal to the weight of 7 men

Sub par quality wood which cannot be repurposed for construction or other specialised needs can be used for cremations, going a long way in reducing waste.

Cremations release carcinogens into the atmosphere, majorly which include HF

CO2

NO2

HCl

PCDFs

polychlorinated dibenzofurans

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

SO2 CO

PCDDs

polychlorinated dibenzodioxins

While also releasing calciﬁed compounds containing metals like:

Sources:

Cremations are most eﬀective in completely annihilating the spread of toxins & diseases caused by bacteria or viruses.

Historically it has been the chosen method to stop the transmission of disease during pandemics.

The Times of India, Paras Singh & Mayank Manohar ,Aug 28, 2018. India Today, Darpan SIngh, June 1,2015. The environmental impact of activities after life: life 66 Tanvi Patel, January 3, 2018. VICE, Nivedita Khandekar, October 21, 2020. cycle assessment of funerals, By Elisabeth Keijzer, August 23,2015. The better India, Matrubhumi-english, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, March 22, 2019.

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x30

Small changes to burial techniques can go a long way to reducing the ecological harm,

A million acre of

forest land equal to 30 times the area of Mumbai cityare cut for

from using a greener coﬃn

of alternative wood that can be decayed faster and easier underground, to using

production of caskets.

burial ground permanently useless Burials with caskets makes the

for any other purpose. Decomposition takes virtually forever because of the sealed nature of the funeral. Which is done according to faith.

‘natural burial’ methods

where a burial ground can be reused after a certain interval of time.

formaldehyde, methanol, glycerin & phenol

Compounds released instantly after the decaying process starts

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Are some the toxins and carcinogens released from casketed burials, sources can be from the body as well as the casket.

H2S CH4

H2O

Burials and Groundwater

20 years Contaminate water reservoir

Sources:

transmit and spread pathogens

make recharge wells unusable

The environmental impact of activities after life: life cycle assessment of funerals, 67 By Elisabeth Keijzer, August 23,2015. Bringing Groundwater Quality Research to the Watershed Scale, by Neil R. Thomson, International Association of Hydrological Sciences, 2005.

Since, people are rarely seen accepting newer modes of funerals, it is also seen as a challenge to make smaller changes that in line add up to bigger savings in the long run. Meanwhile, the rarer cases that do accept changes should have the means to follow through with the ‘newer’ alternative and the infrastructure should not be a deterrent in those cases.

2.3 Literature Review

The environmental impact of activities after life: life cycle assessment of funerals

Burials Table 1 shows the characterized results of the environmental assessment of the burial of one average deceased person, per process step and per impact category. All categories represent an impact on the environment as a consequence of the burial, except human toxicity (HTP); for this category, the total value is negative, due to the recycling of metals in the removal phase, which means that the impact on the environment is actually beneficial with respect to HTP. The process step with the highest impact is in eight impact categories the production of the monument (climate change(CC), ozone depletion (ODP), photochemical oxidant formation (POCP), particulate matter formation (PM), ionizing radiation (IR), marine eutrophication (MEP), natural land (NLT), fossil depletion (FD)), in eight impact categories the production of the coffin (HTP, terrestrial acidification (AP), terrestrial ecotoxicity (TETP), freshwater ecotoxicity (FAETP), marine ecotoxicity (MAETP), agricultural land occupation (ALO), water depletion (WD), Metal depletion (MD)) and in two categories the grave rest period (freshwater eutrophication (FEP), urban land occupation (ULO)) (Table 6). The lowest environmental impact comes in all impact categories from the removal phase, because the recycling of metals results in the avoidance of environmental impacts (Table 6). These results show that the burial itself, i.e. the grave rest period, is not a major cause of environmental impacts in the full funeral lifecycle.

By Elisabeth Keijzer Received: 23 August 2015 /Accepted: 5 August 2016 /Publis hed online: 16 September 2016 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Text from the research The research paper analyses both the methods of cremation and compares their subsequent waste products produced and how they affect the global economy by the use of the term shadow prices, which mean that the amount of investment needed to tackle harmful effects in the particular sector that gets affected due to the act of cremation/burial. The analysis in the end of the study concludes that burials in numbers cause more damage to the ecosystem in the long run. This was concluded by the amount if investment required to tackle its harm being significantly higher than that of cremation. The study ends with saying that at the same time big changes need to be brought upon in both form of funerals to reduce the overall carbon footprints and others toxins being released.

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The aim of the analysis of this study is not to conclude which of the funeral activity is better otr worse, but to be aware of the irreversible damage we cause to the environment. Also the amount of capital that needs to be invested to further revert the damages caused. This study is intended to be an eye opener to choose for other more environment friendly and ecologically sound solutions.

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Table 1 showing the damages to the environment through the activities of burials that include, use of body bags, digging, grave stones etc.

Table 2 showing the damages to the environment through the activities of cremations that include, use of body bags, cremation, caskets etc. 69

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Cremations The environmental impacts of cremation are shown in Table 2, per impact category and per process step. As for burial, the beneficial effects of metal recycling lead to a negative impact value for HTP and FAETP. The coffin production is the process step with the highest score in most impact categories, namely six (HTP, IR, TETP, FAETP, ALO, WD). The flue gas emissions score the highest in five categories (POCP, PM, AP, MEP, MD), the cremation process itself in four categories (CC, ODP, NLT, FD) and the treatment of remains in three categories (FEP, MAETP, ULO). The process step with the lowest environmental impacts is in most categories (11 from 18) the treatment of remains, due to the beneficial impacts of recycling; the preparation of the coffin before the cremation has the lowest impact in all the other categories, also due to recycling processes, namely of the handles. Contrary to burial, the core process steps of the cremation (i.e. the cremation and the flue gas emissions) are thus important factors in the overall impact assessment.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Comparison The comparison of the impacts of burials versus cremations is shown in Fig. 2. All burial impacts are shown as 100 %, against which the cremation impacts are offset. The figure shows that there is no significant difference (thus <10 %) between the two funeral techniques in five impact categories (IR, FEP, ALO, WD, MD) and almost no significant difference (16 %) for TETP. In three impact categories, cremation has the absolute lowest score (HTP, FAETP, ULO). In the ten remaining categories,burial has the lowest environmental impact. The differences between burial and cremation are the largest for HTP (cremation 200 times lower than burial), ULO (cremation 74 times lower than burial) and MAETP (cremation 7 times higher than burial). In all other impact categories, the difference ranges from around 30 % (NLT, PM, AP) to a factor 4 (TETP). Burial has thus the lowest impact in most categories, but in the two main differing categories, its impact is higher than for cremation. The different processes in the two funeral techniques have very different environmental consequences and this makes it difficult to draw conclusions about the overall environmental comparison of the two techniques.

Fig 1. Comparison of the environmental impacts of burial and cremation of one average deceased person in the Netherlands. Cremation impacts are offset against the burial impacts, which are set at 100 %. The y-axis is cut-off at −200 and +300 %, but the boxes indicate that cremation scores beyond this limit in two impact categories: HTP −20,033% and MAETP 684 % Fig 2. Sensitivity analysis; comparison of the minimum and maximum scenarios of the aggregated environmental impacts of burial and cremation of one average deceased person in the Netherlands. In the burial scenarios, the length of the grave rest period and its associated processes is varied. In the cremation scenarios, the gas consumption is varied.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Conclusions from the study

The aim of this study was to provide an environmental benchmark of funerals in order to cover the knowledge gaps about this topic. This study showed that the environmental impact of funerals is very low compared to other activities during a person’s life, which means that the environmental impacts of funerals in general are not primarily a reason for societal concern. Since the funeral’s impact is relatively low compared to other impacts during a person’s life, the relevance of the differences between burial and cremation is even smaller. These differences are partly caused by the core principles of techniques, namely, the use of either land or natural gas, and the affiliated environmental impacts, but a large part of the environmental impacts is caused by secondary processes like the coffin and metal recycling. The fact that these secondary processes dominate the results illustrates how relatively small the total average funeral impact can be. In the sustainability assessment of funerals, it is therefore important to investigate all primary and secondary processes and pay attention to deviations from average processes, because these might have a large influence on the conclusions.

The study looked at the different pollutant emissions from the two funeral techniques. The final conclusion should be to prove what kind of funeral is the best ecologically but to recognise the huge impact a funeral has on its environment. The conclusion derived should be that no matter the way of funeral, the amount of toxins being released in time pile up and result in degradation of the environment. It is absolutely crucial for the people of all faith and beliefs to consider these effects and to take steps in accepting and making other sustainable techniques or tweaks in their cremation systems. This is the only way to bring about a positive ecological change, and being one of the major stakeholders in this activity, its interests should no be overlooked.

The overall result of this research is a benchmark and insights in the origins of environmental impacts of funerals, which can be used in further assessment of ‘green’ funeral options, for example, in future development of novel coffin types, metal recycling procedures, graveyard maintenance, crematorium buildings or monument design. When this study is used in future research on the sustainability of funerals, it is important to keep in mind that the environmental impact of funerals can be quite small in comparison to other daily life activities. Together with the environmental results, it is important to take into account social, cultural, climatic, local, economical and ethical arguments before changing policies or giving recommendations.

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Conclusion of the study

This method is fairly new and hasn't seen much acceptance amongst people. White coal is just small chiplets of wood or farming waste that releases less quantities of CO2 and other greenhouse gases.

2.4 Literature Review

They also contribute in keeping the green cover intact. Acting as a waste management system.

Alternate cremation methods in practice, that

are environmentally friendly • Cow dung cakes The wood used in cremations is usually sourced from the trees in Himalayas. And to ease this load on the natural forests, some Varanasi cremation ghats have adopted the method of using cow dung cakes as a fuel. Chandramauli Upadhyaya a hindu scholar, debated that the use of cow dung was traditionally correct, cheaper and less ecologically harmful. Being traditional, this method can be accepted amongst people.

• Briquettes Another farming waste, can be used to cremate bodies, using up waste product that will be burnt anyway, reducing the need for hardwood.

• Pyre ovens (like MOKSHDA cremation system)

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

White coal can be produced from - Groundnut shells - Cotton hulls and salks - Castor seed shells - Forest leaves; wood chips and shavings - Sugarcane bagasse - Rice husk and paddy straw - Mustard waste - Coir dust - Coffee husk - Sunflower waste - Maize stalks - Bajra (pearl millet) cobs - Sesame seeds oil cake - Wheat straw

In open cremations the heat isn't insulated, thence the requirement of large amounts of wood to hold the heat for the body to burn at a specific temperature. The use of pyre ovens in ghat allows for a semi enclosed space that can hold the heat in for longer reducing the need for wood from 500 kgs to 100 kg.

A briquette is a compressed block of coal dust or other combustible biomass material (e.g. charcoal, sawdust, wood chips, peat, or paper) used for fuel and kindling to start a fire.

Reference: A death in the village means a tree is cut down, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Matrubhumi, May 22, 2019 By using of agro waste to cremate bodies, this man has saved 35,000 trees, Nivedita Khandekar, VICE India, Octover 21, 2020 Green alternatives to cremation, Tanvi Patel, Better India, January 3, 2018 MOKSHDA cremation systems 72

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• White coal cremation

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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‘The Infinity Burial’ suit by artist and entrepreneur, Jae Rhim Lee. Who is trying to make burials safer for the environment by involving fungi in the fore front of the processes.

“Why not just accept that we’re going to die, and do less harm to the environment in the process? Happy Earth Day!” Biodegradable Urns and Death’s Green Frontier, New York Times, Katie Rogers, April 22, 2016

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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The memorial reef is a natural, alternative approach to burial. The cremated remains of a person are mixed in with concrete and then placed into a mold to make the memorial reef or eternal reef. After the concrete sets, family members are allowed to customize the reef with writing, hand prints and chalk drawings. After this, the ecofriendly reefs are placed into the ocean among other coral reefs where they help to repair damage to the reefs while also providing new habitats for fish and other sea communities. It has become a new way to memorialize the passing person while also protecting the marine environment. The high cost of the memorial reefs has caused this alternative form of burial to remain minimal and uncommon.

2.5 Literature Review

Other forms of funerals being planned for in the future.

• Alkaline hydrolysis

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

• Natural Burials

Alkaline hydrolysis, also referred to as resomation, is another approach to natural burial. It uses high temperature water mixed with potassium hydroxide to dissolve human remains. During this process, the body is put into an enclosed, stainless steel chamber. The chamber fills with the chemical and water solution and is then lightly circulated. After a couple of hours, the body is worn down and bone is the only thing that remains. The bones are then pressed down into a powder and returned to the associated family.

Natural burials ar an alternative to the casketed burials usually followed in the west. The aim of natural burials is to make small changes in the burial method to reduce the huge ecological impact, traditional burials have. This is done by digging less into the soil. A casket is made of wicker wood, which is weak and hollow and biodegrades easier. Instead of caskets, the body can also be wrapped in a paper coffin or cloth. Natural burials also look into how cemeteries are presented, by focusing on not placing any tombstones or just a small rock to signify the position of burial and also focusing less on the cemetery’s green lawns, which usually need fertilizers and pesticides. All these allow for a much sustainable burial for the deceased while maintaining a better and more ecological friendly approach to the dead.

The outcome is comparable to cremation but results in an environmentally friendly process that does not release chemical emissions and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. After this process, the water used goes to a regular water treatment facility where it is filtered and cleaned and returned to the water cycle. This method of cremation is very rarely accepted for its use of the government water treatment plants.

Another added benefit of natural burials are that, it doesn't come in the way of traditions and customs. Also cemeteries that use natural burials, can be recycled to allow for more burials, as the decomposition is faster in this case.

Reference: Frankel, George. “What is an Eternal Reef?”. Eternal Reefs. Retrieved 3 April 2017. “Resomation: Like Cremation, but Green”. ABC News. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2017.

Reference: “Differences and Similarities of Green Burial in the United States and Europe” by Kate Queen, April 9, 2019 76

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• Memorial reef

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

STEP 1

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Alkaline hydrolysis burial

STEP 2

STEP 3

STEP 4

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• Mushroom burial Mushroom burial has been developed by Jae Rhim Lee and her colleagues to address the impact traditional burial approaches have on the environment. It is an eco-friendly process which consists of dressing the cadaver in a bodysuit with mushroom spores woven into it, nicknamed the Infinity Burial Suit. Rhim developed her own mushroom variety that will best decompose human remains. As the mushrooms grow, they consume the remains within the suit as well as the toxins that are being released by the body. Rhim and her colleagues created this suit as a symbol of a new way for people to think about the relationship between their body after death and the environment. • Tree pod burials Another method of natural burial is being developed to plant the human body in fetal position inside an egg shaped pod. The pod containing the body will form a biodegradable capsule that will not harm the surrounding earth. The biodegradable capsule doubles as a seed which can be customized to grow into either a birch, maple, or eucalyptus tree.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The goal of this method is to create parks full of trees that loved ones can walk through and mourn, as opposed to a graveyard full of tombstones. This method aims to return the body to the earth in the most environmentally friendly way possible. Australia has considered this method to be one of the most innovative methods to keep the memory of the deceased and have a ecologically friendly funeral. And aim to build memorial tree parks for the practice of this method of burial.

Reference: “This Mushroom Suit Digests Your Body After You Die”. ScienceAlert. Retrieved 28 April 2017 “Biodegradable burial pods will turn you into a tree when you die”. Global News. Retrieved 28 April 2017 79

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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A Company School watercolor painting, Patna, 1824 columbia.edu records.

“In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” — Benjamin Franklin, 1789.

Economics behind funerals In the chapter

Introduction

Affordability of Cremation / Funerals. • To understand the capability of a person to afford a traditional cremation/ funeral. • Comparison of Census data: • Economic status. • Religion concentration

This chapter of the book deals with the perspective of how the current system of cremations and burials, is not proficient for an average lower income member of the functioning society. From the earlier chapters it’s been seen and understood how the cremations and their traditions are integral to people following a particular belief and faith. Studies were also conducted to understand the shortcomings in a crematorium in regard to the stakeholders that interact with it.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Commoditization • The commoditization of death, how capitalism influenced cremations/ funerals. • Look into case studies such as the Death hostel in Varanasi and many such the world has to offer

The economic side of cremations takes this a step further into analysing how its costs affect these stakeholders. How the poorer sections of the society are affected and are abused in the system. It also looks under the losses the country has to undergo dealing with the traditional cremation system, that uses up a lot of timber, through illegal felling of trees to even the involvement of illegal groups that keep this cycle continuing.

Ecological relations • Natural resource requirement, for a traditional cremation/ funeral. • The economic toll, for providing timber for cremations The Stakeholders • Timber mafia and its good and bad influence in the industry. • All workers and sub castes that take care of cremation activities.

Also looking into the newer market startups and the existing undertakers that try to solve some problems, meanwhile discussing the places where they lag behind. The chapter will also try to come up with a solution on the above studied subjects. How an architectural intervention can resolve these issues. 83

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The knowledge of the trend of costs of cremation is an important aspect while studying cremation rites and their significance to their respective religions. Every religious individual spends major chunks of their lives believing in the gospels and texts of their scriptures, praying to his/her God, asking for guidance, forgiveness, bliss and also an idea of heaven/Moksha, according to their beliefs. It only makes sense for the person to be adamant to have a funeral that is in complete accordance to the religions regulations for a funeral, that will allow them to be with their Gods themselves. This sense of belief, coupled with a number of illiterate people in India, leaves out a scope for them to be taken advantage of. Essentially from the lower/ backward sections of the society, their only ways of knowing about their religious scriptures and the words of the holy is through other people, reciting it to them; giving them a sense of power over the ones unaware.

3.1 Literature Review

Can You Afford to Die? Estimates of Expenditure on Rituals and Impact on Ecology Archana Kaushik Department of Social Work, University of Delhi. Vol. 53, Issue No. 3, 20 Jan, 2018

This is the case usually in rural and impoverished urban areas, where illegal influences or just the cremation/burial ground officials that practice this abuse of people.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Text from the research article “Even though death seems to wipe out all social inequalities, ways of disposing dead bodies continue to perpetuate economic differences. This article provides an indicative estimate of the costs incurred in cremation and burial according to religious affiliations. Findings show that while rich people’s spending on death rituals reflects their social position, the poor with limited means struggle hard to conform to normative practices. Traditional methods of corpse disposal have environmental costs. With 105 people dying every minute, there is an urgent need to adopt greener as well as cost-effective ways of handling dead bodies in India.”

It is also important to analyze how the government looks at the issues and has taken required steps to mitigate this problem. While also looking into what all goes into a cremation and burial and if these costs can be cut down for the sake of the people who are eventually all going to visit it. The key findings form the study are illustrated in the later pages, where the minimum costs and a range of their variance, with the elements that constitute the largest chunks of the funeral procession. 84

Hindu Cremation costs An analysis of the minimum cost for a decent cremation in India.

Wood prices range from Rs. 6 to Rs. 14,000 per kg. This range is due the different premium plus cheap woods that are supplied to the crematorium. Generally Mango, eucalyptus, sakhauri trees are used. Aggregate cost for wood for the funeral for an average sized body comes to around

55%

Rs. 2,200 per kg

Rs. 2,200 to Rs. 50,40,000. Saamagri, amounts to about Rs.

to Rs. 50,000. With average expenditure around Rs. 500.

200

Rs. 300 gives a burning stick that burns slowly and lasts the whole cremation.

Rs. 200 ensures a caretaker that

looks after the fire, ensuring the body gets heat evenly.

Any ritual before scattering the ashes in a holy river example Varanasi and Haridwar, a brahmin may charge from

Rs. 100 to several thousands. Any form of feasts for brahmins as remembrance or donations to temples or charities are also prevalent. These may range from several hundred to

tens of thousands of rupees.

The bare minimum amount required to be shelled to provide a decent cremation.

12.5%

Rs. 500 7.5%

Rs. 300 5%

Rs. 200 10%

Rs. 400 10%

Rs. 400 Rs. 4000

Christian burial costs An analysis of the minimum cost for a decent funeral in India.

The majority of the cost for a burial goes in buying the casket. Kuccha caskets cost to about Rs.

3500 and pucca ones come at about Rs. 6500 and can extend to several lakhs of ruppees.

Price of booking graves starts at around

Rs. 2000, with an extra cost to dig the

said burial spot. Premium lands can cost much higher

Charges are taken in separate for the priests’ duties which is taken as per the financial condition of the family.

Organisation of prayer meetings, feasts, donations or other charitable activities are also handled by the family.

Arrangement of flowers, and other required materials are either provided by the church, the funeral service or by the family of the deceased.

The bare minimum amount required to be shelled to provide a decent burial.

45%

Rs. 3,500

35%

Rs. 2,800

Rs. 400

12.5%

Rs. 1,000

3.5%

Rs. 300 Rs. 8000

Muslim burial costs

An analysis of the minimum cost for a decent funeral in India.

The cost of the holy shroud that envelops the deceased, costs about Rs

1000.

Charpai on which the body is carried is loaned from the mosque for its particular use. Digging of the grave by a hired professional

takes about Rs. 1000. Premium graves and other accessories like marble stone lining over the grave or a grave stone, are preferred by affluent muslims, which can range upto several lakhs.

Wooden planks for helping with burial cost to about Rs 3500 to Rs 4000.

13.3%

Rs. 1,000

13.3%

Rs. 1,000

46.8%

Rs. 3,500

26.6%

Specials scents, flower arrangements and other requirements for the burial take about Rs 2000 to Rs 5000.

Rs. 2,000

The bare minimum amount required to be shelled to provide a decent burial.

Rs. 7,500

Other types of cremation costs

The cost range of other forms of cremation techniques that are prevalent in India. These forms of cremation aren’t the traditional and typical format, but are the newer methods introduced to encourage more ecological friendliness and affordability for people from lower economic backgrounds.

Electric crematoriums require a capital of

Rs. 1 Crore to install and an verage of Rs. 3 lakhs to maintain it annually.

Rs. 3,500

Gas based crematoriums require a capital of Rs. 1 crore for installation of and an average of Rs. 4-6 lakhs for their maintenance, which includes the costs for gas tanks

Rs. 2,500

The government subsidizes the rate for traditional cremations, to make them more accessible to people from poorer sections of society. But they tend to go higher with the additional costs of priests, raw products used in funeral to even booking a place, due to the higher demand.

Rs. 1,500

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Conclusion of the study The study shows how a funeral procession’s cost varies tremendously depending on very small factors; just from adjusting the type of wood or the type of casket can completely skyrocket the amount for capital shelled in a loved one’s funeral. The huge disparity also implies that how every crematorium/priest is free to charge their own valuation, depending on the assumptions of the family’s economic capability. This also means that someone who is willing to take advantage of them is very much allowed to do so. Although the government has tried to make some cremations cheaper, and introduced easier cremation methods, they seldom get any takers, as many limits like, not being able to be complete traditional processions or just the societal pressure that a cheaper cremation shows the family doesn’t care about the deceased can really falter the steps taken by the government. Along with this, crematoriums and burial grounds under a private trust, are pretty much allowed to fix their own prices, use illegal to highly premium wood for cremations. A new approach that can normalize the costs and allow for better traditional processions are the need of the hour.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing a catholic burial ground in Kerela, to be noted are the use of grave stones and concrete covers over the burials spots.

The common trend is to see young adults being forced to drop off from their education streams and to be pushed into the labour industry or such to provide for the family as well as the debt.

3.2

Coupled with the harassment seen in the case of funerals where the cremation officials ask for donations as bribes to conduct the cremation or hold onto the ashes till more money has been donated. Also some traditions like Gaudan where the family member of the deceased has to donate a cow to a brahmin, can take a huge toll in the income level of a person belonging to the lower income margin.

Analysis

Average income levels in India,

Comparison with the data from the analysis of the earlier section. According to the World Bank’s statement labeling countries by their income levels, India by the end of 2019 came under the lower middle income group. Which is a term given by determining the average annual income of a person in the country. (This takes into account the population, genders and income disparities) and is calculated using the Atlas method; according to the World bank’s statement:

The table shown points that in 2007, upto 96% of the households had less than $500 of annual disposable income (Rs 37k). Disposable income is the income generated by a person after the subtraction of his/ her taxes. Since 2007, India has set its official threshold at ₹26 a day ($0.43) in rural areas and about ₹32 per day ($0.53) in urban areas. Which are way lower than the World Bank’s $1.25 per day income-based definition.

The Bank uses four income groups:

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Low – Rs 70,069 or less

Lower-middle – Rs 70,137 to Rs 2,73,098 Upper-middle – Rs 2,73,167 to Rs 8,45,955 Reference: “Not poor if you earn Rs.32 a day: Planning Commission”. India Today. 21 September 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2017. Chen and Ravallion, China is Poorer than we Thought, But No Less Successful in the Fight against Poverty Policy Research Working Paper 4621, The World Bank (2008), page 9

High – Rs 8,46,023 or more.

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This makes it safe to assume the average earning of India lies around Rs 70000 to Rs 270000. Poorer sections in India can be safe to assume earning even less than Rs 70k annually. As from the information seen, it is observed that cremations, on the cheapest margins costs to around Rs 4-10k. For poorer sections of the society, a cremation can nab off a major chunk of their income and can force the person into taking loans or signing members of his/her family into work.

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(Top) Table 3 shows the number of households according to the amount of disposable annual income they possess through the years of 1999 to 2007. Showing how disproportionately wealth is distributed and how poor, the poor actually are. (Bottom) the diagram highlights the percent even clearer to showcase the amount of wealth owned by the rich 10% and the poorest 60%

3.3 Analysis

Startups breathe life into India’s funeral services Seeing the neglect and general un-uniformity in the cost and management of cremations. Many startups have begun to bridge the gap of the consumers and the cremators. 2 larger startups that have established themselves in a manner of success are Mokshshil and Anthyesti.

Similarly the self-funded Mokshshil clocked a turnover of Rs 9.86 lakh last year. “With a total of 11 full-time employees, eight part-time employees and five interns, Mokshshil has so far served more than 300 families,” informs 32-year-old Desai, who co-founded Mokshshil with her husband Abhijeet Singh in 2015.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

About Mokshshil and Anthyesti: Services offered by these online startups usually attracts nuclear families and professionals who have migrated within the country and are looking for more organised options during difficult times. Targeting mostly the middle class and upper middle class as potential market.

They also take up arranging death certificates partnering with local government authorities. Extra services like lavish flower arrangements, videography, refreshments and priests cost extra in the packages, these can cause a burial cost to even reach 1 lakh rupees. Whereas web streaming, can add charges on Rs. 20,000 depending on the scale of streaming required.

Religions catered to are Hinduism, Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrians. Both have been in the market sphere for over 4 years and have bagged many awards and recognition for their work. 92

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Services included under their portfolio are • Help execute and plan last funeral rites. This includes provision of a place to conduct last ceremonies, booking traveling, required priests, all required materials and even booking cremation ghats or burial grounds. • Consultancy services for a traditional funeral service. • Tie ups with organ donation centers. • Pre-booking cremation rites. • Moksha Anjali services with services planned alongside merchandising. • Pilgrimage planning. • Online store for procurement of funeral related groceries, supplies etc. • Freezer boxes for temporary preservation of bodies • Live streaming services for NRI residents or, recently in the case of ongoing pandemic. • Donation services. Anthyesti has served close to 150 funerals with revenue of close to Rs. 6 lakhs. “Responses have been very positive and the growth has been quite well since the more we went deep into the services, there were quite a lot of windows of opportunity which opened up. New services were introduced which helped our clients. There has been a steady increase in the turnover,” adds Reddy. Bootstrapped at present, Reddy invested close to Rs. 10 lakhs in the startup.

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Undertakers are one of the oldest in the business of providing and arranging for funeral services Simpson Kumar and his four brothers run the Chennai-based Vincent Parker ‘integrated’ funeral service. The basic one costs ₹3,000 and others are priced up to ₹30,000. Families sometimes request a mobile mortuary to be delivered home and these cost up to ₹5,000 a day. Kumar’s clients were mostly Christians until the 1980s, but now include members of the Hindu and Parsi communities. Repatriation flights and other services attached along with it rack up the bill to about Rs 5 lakhs. Outlandish requests like scattering ashes over Ganga, with a helicopter or a chartered personal jet to pick up the dead body for travel are also fulfilled which can cost to around Rs 10 lakhs.

Reference: Death rites get the professional touch, Sandhya Sman, Time of India, November 6, 2014. Meet Kolkata’s First Lady of Funerals, Arundhati Chaterjee, TweakIndia, September 29, 2019 Death Inc, Prince Mathews Thomas, The Hindu - Business line March 02, 2015

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

A news paper clipping showing Mokshshil being featured for their services.

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The priests who conduct funeral processions and remembrance rites, have also expanded their businesses to widen their reach of clients: On the banks of Kashi ghat, Varanasi many priests sit conducting pujas everyday. It is a common site to see them use phones and other technologies to conduct pujas for people who cannot visit the ghat for remembrance ceremonies. Many such priests use online portals as well to connect to their clients. Dwivedi, one such priest, in 2008 set up Kashi Moksha Incorporation, a registered society that ‘provides funeral service to Hindus all around the world’. Two years later, the priest added another dimension to his service — the website kashimoksha.com to connect better with his clients. Poojas are often done on call, where the customer records the call which is then sent to other relatives using CDs. Next in line are live telecasts of ceremonies through skype. While there is no official estimate, the industry is worth about $2.5 billion in India, where about 8.5 million die every year. Which lags behind its competitors when put against the world.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing a chilled body transporting vehicle, provided by Anthyesti’s funeral packages.

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Places where the new startups and undertakers fall short: Both the ways of the newer startups and the undertakers do one crucial work of reducing the scope of the family of the deceased having to deal with the nitty gritty of planning a funeral. They also end up reducing the hassle and worry of dealing with the officials of transportation, food caterers and cremators, where it is recorded that bribes and extortion are commonplace. Both also have really common and fixed customers and target groups: The undertakers focus on the wealthy and the extravagant. Providing services like embalming, private jets for transport, scattering of ashes through helicopters etc. They have been on the funeral business for long and have since only catered for the same customer group. The startups focus on the tech savvy and the people who are new to a particular location and need not know about where and how to set up a funeral. Both these services help or serve the Upper middle class and the rich. Very less efforts are taken to look after the poor or helping them with certain cheaper packages.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Interviews with the startups, showed that their target customers were in fact the millennial groups, who were willing to try out their services, which the poor and rich weren’t. The startups for the immediate future targeted these groups, to expand and grow their companies further, rather than looking after the plight of the poor. This begs to ask the question for how and who will look after the interests and safety of the lower income groups.

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“There is nothing ghoulish about the home I run. People are not dying, they're gaining moksha (salvation)” - Bhairavnath Shukla, Manager at Mukti Bhavan, Varanasi

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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The relatives of the dying guests are also provided with accommodation and basic amenities at this modest hotel as they internally battle the dilemma of waiting for their loved ones to die. A meager fee of Rs 20 is charged for those who can pay. The poor are accommodated for free. “However, I make sure I admit only genuine cases. Harsh as it may sound, we are not a place people can come to just because they have nowhere else to go”, Mr. Bhairav said. Lodging at Mukti Bhavan comes with a set of unique conditions: guests are given a maximum of two weeks to die and if they don’t die then they are gently asked to move out. Mukti bhawan, as said by the manager is not a hotel, the people don't come to stay but to gain penance.

3.4 Literature Review

A case study of the Death Hostels in Varanasi

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

In Varanasi, it is not a uncommon site to hear and learn about certain hospice centers, for the people who want to die in the holy land. These centers are known for their incredibly marked down prices and the vast number of people that flock their, when they think their times are close.

“When I die, I hope they will come to take me to the pyre”

Case study 1 Mukti Bhavan is one of the unique ‘death hotels’ that have existed in Varanasi to help fulfil the wishes of these believers. It has 12 rooms but Bhairav Nath Shukla, the 60-year-old manager of Mukti Bhavan is known to set up beds in the corridors in case there are more guests. He firmly believes that “dying in Varanasi is a privilege and hence it must be celebrated, not mourned.”

-Resident Gayatri Devi from Rajasthan, who has been at the lodge for more than five years, a son and two daughters living in other parts of India.

References: Checking into Mukti Bhavan — Varanasi, India’s Death Hotel, Khyati Mehta, October 2015. medium.com/ Moksha Bhavan – The Hostel In Varanasi Where People Check-In To Die, Isha Jalan, Scoopwhoop.com, December 05, 2014 India’s city where people come to die, Romita Saluja, BBC, June 18, 2019 98

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A regular day at this early 20th-century brick and plaster building begins with an elaborate four-hour ritual performed by the priests in the Bhavan’s temple. An intensely devotional atmosphere is created with bells ringing and loud chanting of Sanskrit shlokas (holy verses) and bhajans (devotional songs). The vigor of the morning aarti (ritual of worship) soon dies down and the Bhavan regains its sombre mood. The poorly-lit interiors and its dull ambience are oddly fitting for this house of death.

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Case study 2 One such place is the Mumukshu Bhawan (Home for the Ailing) established in 1920. Locally known as the Moksha Bhawan (Salvation Home), the elderly settle here, stubbornly waiting for death. Some, for decades. Unlike the other hostel, Mumukshu bhawan actually allows the gustes to stay as long as they want, if they are ready to pay for their stay. Eightyyear -old Manbudh Tripathi has been staying at Mumukshu for the past 17 years. “I have been waiting for the day to come when I will leave this world never to return” he says. “More than 300 people stay in Mumukshu and most of them are above 60. They come here to die,” says Manish Pandey, 43, the manager. Mumukshu charges a minimal rent for accommodation and electricity. Those who cannot afford are also allowed to stay. Some rooms even come with luxuries of AC and cook tops for the guests who want to live for a longer period of time. Mumuksha Bhawan is treated like a hotel, providing its service to the people till whenever they desire.

References: Hotel Death, Moni Basu, CNN, referenced October 15, 2020 ‘Hotels of death’ in Indian holy city, SHowkat SHafi, Aljazeera, December 5, 2013.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing Girish Mishra’s daughter attends to her dying father at Mukti Bhavan.

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All seized wood in Garo HIlls, Meghalaya, procured from illegal tree fellers and tribals, that are then auctioned off to either the locals or traders from outside. Accusations point to this being purposefully done, such that he chopped wood can be shown legally bought and then sold for premium prices in Delhi, Mumbai and other metropolitan cities. Reference “Damned by nature; damned by man” Ranjit Singh Gill Joint Director, Forest Survey of India Kaulagarh Road, Dehradun – 248195 Uttarakhand, India

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3.5 Literature Review

Timber Mafia -and its role in the funeral business Timber mafia refers to organized crime in the field of illegal logging in timber.

been substituted with lower-quality chir wood in Jammu and Kashmir state; the higher quality wood was intercepted in the process of being smuggled across the state border into Punjab.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Protected forest areas in parts of India – such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Jharkhand – are vulnerable to illegal logging by timber mafias that have co opted or intimidated forestry officials, local politicians, businesses and citizenry. Non-state groups have joined the nexus in militancy-affected areas such as Kashmir. Clearcutting is sometimes covered-up by conniving officials who report fictitious forest fires.

References: Ajay Singh Rawat, Forest Management in Kumaon Himalaya: Struggle of the Marginalised People, Indus Publishing, 1999, Ajay Singh Rawat, Man and Forests: The Khatta and Gujjar Settlements of Sub-Himalayan Tarai, Indus Publishing, 1993, H.C. Upadhyay, Status of Scheduled Tribes in India, Anmol Publications Private Limited, 2004, Prem Xalxo, Complementarity of Human Life and Other Life Forms in Nature: A Study of Human Obligations Toward the Environment with Particular Reference to the Oraon Indigenous Community of Chotanagpur, India, Editrice Pontificia Università Gregoriana, 2007, The Indian Journal of Public Administration v.40, Indian Institute of Public Administration, 1994: “The rise and rise of Veerappan”. The Hindustan Times. 2002. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012. After water for petrol, Army gets ‘substandard’ wood”. The Tribune, Chandigarh. 1 August 2005 Culture of Corruprion in India by Satishchander Yadav Complementarity of Human Life and Other Life Forms in Nature, by Prem Xalxo

Many studies indicate large losses of forest cover to indiscriminate logging by timber mafias, with over a million hectares in the environs of Chhotanagpur alone being illegally transferred by the forest department directly to industrial, mining and logging companies. Besides the environmental degradation, public financial losses can be substantial: One 1994 estimate of stolen timber in the state of Karnataka amounted to Rs 10 billion (about US$230 million). As with coal, there have been incidents of substitution of low-grade wood for high-quality timber when the procurement of wood is authorized for government use. In an incident in 2005, officials determined that high-quality deodar wood meant for military and railway use had 102

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Image showing The amount of wood seized in Kamrup, Assam, June 2020

"The worldwide deforestation does not differ much from overall situation either in Chotanagpur or in India at large. According to the estimate presented by Jay B. McDaniel, “in any typical day, we lose 116 square miles of rain-forest, or about an acre a second. We lose another 72 square miles to encroaching deserts because of human mismanagement and overpopulation”. One of the reasons associated with rapid rate of deforestation is population increase. A study by the Food and Agriculture Organization (1991), analyzing statistics from sixty developing countries, concluded that “population growth is significantly associated with deforestation. And the future is not promising: according to the UN demographic projections, almost 80% of the population of 2025, some 6 billion inhabitants, are expected to be living in tropical areas of the world, putting pressure on the remaining forests”.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Handing over of forests to non-tribal forest officials actually helped prosper the timber mafia whose activities accelerated deforestation at a very alarming rate in Chotanagpur. Outside Chotanagpur, the overall forest situation in India is far from satisfactory. Deforestation has been an integral part of any developmental activities such as industrialization, urbanization, and construction of dams. In many parts of India, apart from the sporadic cutting down of trees so to clear arable land and to provide fuel, the unholy alliance between the timber mafia and the forest officials is the major cause of deforestation. Although the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 forbade the transfer of forest land without the permission of the Central Government of India, the control of over one million hectares of forest land was given to mining companies, industrial units and other private agencies between 1980 and 2006 by the Forest Department." 103

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(Left) Caravaggio’s Death of the Virgin, 1606, Louvre Paris.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Funerals and Public Topics covered in the chapter

Abstract

• Understanding the relationship shared between public health and funerals. • How funeral waste products can be harmful to public directly or indirectly. • Recognize the different stakeholders in respect to crematoriums and individually study areas of abuse and failings of infrastructure - The people residing near a crematorium - Family members of the deceased - The workers in a crematorium • Understand the pre-conceived notions for these stakeholders against a crematorium / burial ground. • Conduct surveys and ask for public opinion regarding the same. • Understand the shift in crematorial processes during COVID-19 and other pandemics in the past, and the how lack of infrastructure was unable to account for the high demand of cremations.

This chapter of the book concentrates on how the presence of a crematorium, affects its stakeholders, the people residing near the crematorium, the family of the deceased and the workers inside the crematorium. The chapter takes its understandings from the earlier chapters dealing with the ecology and directly related to how the byproducts can deal with the said stakeholders, in a positive or negative manner. Dealing with its human stakeholders and analyzing their struggles and challenges, physically, mentally or due to the faults in the system. Tracing back in history, to compare the ignorance facilities like crematoriums face till today. And the detrimental effects it has in situations dealing with mass deaths (natural catastrophes, terror attacks or pandemics). This is done by analyzing areas of abuse in looking into sociology, economics and architectural practices. The chapter puts forth the current conditions of crematoriums and cemeteries and breaks them down to findings and conclusions that can be put forth while revamping the funerary architectural practice. The chapter also aims to produce some solutions for the above issues, limiting them to its architectural scope, for the sake of the dissertation. 107

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Stakeholder 1

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

People living near a crematorium / burial ground.

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(Left) illustrated map showing the location of Shirvane gaon crematorium and its immediate site context

4.1.1 Case Study

Looking at Shirvane gaon crematorium, and how the it affects its surrounding context

crematorium itself was equipped with proper chimneys and filters which release its harmful pollutants straight into the atmosphere, without going through the neighboring spaces. The placement of a water body in the north is also favorable for cultural and traditional reasons, but since the water body is a still water reservoir, it isn’t used for cremation purpose anymore. Also the surrounding space of the water body has been converted into a park, which is used as an urban open space and also used for immersion of idols. This again lands in the same set of problems as with the public park. The western edge of the crematorium is has its road access and its most proximity with residential complexes. For winds that flow from northeast directions, smoke and other pollutants can easily get diverted towards these settlements, causing irreversible damage to the people living nearby. Although the settlements there are G+2 structures and they are relatively safer, something like this isn’t preferred.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Shirvane gaon crematorium is located in Juinagar, Navi Mumbai, India. This was specifically chosen because of its positioning sandwiched between a residential zone and surrounded by NMMC parks. This was done to highlight the current problems in planning for cities where crematoriums and burial ground sometimes find themselves at the center of the city, as the city keeps on expanding. Although the crematorium is tried and planned to be in a place somewhat separated from the main residential zones, it is merely not enough, as seen in the case of crematoriums, the smoke and other harmful gases arising out of the place, can directly affect people residing near it. The crematorium has city railway lines passing by its west, which is a good planning decision as the railway lines always have a green buffer space and also the space isn’t inhabited by people. The north and south of the site are surrounded by public parks. Now this isn’t an ideal planning decision, however this would have been much, better in execution if the

For a crematorium, the worst affected groups are that surround around 350-400m radius, where they succumb to pungent smells and harsh levels of smoke.

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People living near a funeral home, go through the following problems

Funeral houses should be planned in

surrounded by thick forestry.

Lung diseases

Due to the close proximity to smoke and smog

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the complete outskirts of settlements on infertile lands,

If placed near a water body, it should make sure the water doesnt ﬁrst go through the funeral house and then to the setllements.

Contaminated water

For dealing with smoke and smog, filters and large chimneys with filters are essential, such that it doesnt has to pass through the settlements before diffusing with the atmosphere.

Polluted water sources like rivers o underground water reservoirs

Use of substitutes to lower the

Trauma

Mental stress of being next to a place attached with pain and loss.

amount of smoke, or other greenhouse gases and overall decay time underground.

Heat source

crematoriums being a heat source can warm up surrounding regions.

Encourage newer methods of funerals, MOKSHDA systems, electric or

gaseous cremators, which go a long way in reducing the amount of pollutants.

Diseases

Burials if done incorrectly can be sources of spreading viral or bacterial infections

Wild animals

If burials arent done proplery, it can be frequented by wolves and jackals.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

All these problems can however be reduced by making smaller design and cremation/burial techniques. These solutions can be grouped into architecural and social changes. Sources:

National Geographic publications and IBERDROLA online publications

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Stakeholder 2

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Families and friends that come to cremate / bury their loved ones.

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(Left) illustration by Cecila Yang, the imaginary library, 100 day project, 2018

4.2.1 Survey conclusions

Preconceived notions of people visiting a crematorium/burial ground. The first area of research deals with the responses acquired from the survey floated by the author, looking into various fields involving funerals.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The visitors of a crematorium/cemetery who come to complete the last funeral rites of their loved ones become the primary users of the crematorium/ burial ground. The experience of these individuals become the top most priority for architects designing a space dealing with funerary activities.

The area for the users looks into the impressions and preconceived notions of an user who has either been to a crematorium/ cemetery or hasn’t. The survey also asks the reason that might lead to a conclusion like this. The research also asks about certain common mis practices and ill happenings that are commonly heard about in spaces like these.

It is also important to study this user group throughly, to understand what are their attitudes and impressions of a crematorium/ cemetery and take conclusions form thier observations and experiences and adpt them to the design brief that is in turn able to serve these individuals well. The research here look into the accounts from the users, looking at surveys conducted by the author and also research journals publishing such experiences. It is essential that all experiences might be co incidental and need not speak of all crematoriums and burial ground altogether. Yet the goal is to identify the errors and prevent them from happening in the out coming design brief.

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4.2.2 Literature review

Recorded cases of Abuse experienced by crematorium users.

There have been many recorded cases where the next to kin of the deceased have to undergo harassment in the form of blackmailing, asking for bribes and to hiked up prices for so called additional services. The government has subsidised the rates for cremations to a fixed minimal amount, the cremation officers, abuse the families claiming additional work, supplies need to be provided for the cremation. Many a times the cremation ghats are so overbooked that families are forced to book an VIP cremation spot to avoid the wait and do the funeral in a completely overcharged rate.

Exerpt taken from “Can You Afford to Die? Estimates of Expenditure on Rituals and Impact on

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Ecology” Archana Kaushik Department of Social Work, University of Delhi. Vol. 53, Issue No. 3, 20 Jan, 2018 The users of a crematorium, are what constitute as the heart and soul for the crematorium. It also is the only source of bread and butter for the crematorium and its staff/workers. Utmost care for their needs and a provision of a pious experience becomes imperative for a crematorium’s functioning. But like other, services many abuses and malfunctions happen, some of which are illustrated in the study analysis and the case studies.

As many of the cremations get wood from timber mafias or other illegal sources, premium quality timber are bought at premium rates, and are forcibly charged, claiming it be better for the soul’s transmission. At the same time the people opting for subsidised funerals are supplied with substandard materials (wet wood, wood from discarded furnitures, plywood etc)

This sort of experiences become commonplace because of the association of a crematorium/ burial sopt as something negative and something that always either gets ignored or forgotten. Making them the breeding spots for activities like this. It basically comes down to the hands to the architects and planners to try to mitigate these practices.

The worst affected groups are undoubtedly the poorer sections of society who cannot afford outlandish funeral prices with a lesser bracket of disposable income. In rural areas, misinformation about certain rituals also seep out more money from the hands of the poor. Whereas, in Urban areas, briberies are commonplace. 115

Case study 2

Rashmi (name changed) has spent a little over ₹3 lakh on death rituals of her mother-in-law. Since she passed away at a ripe age of 92 years, the pyre was decorated with balloons and ribbons and a musical band was hired. The priest demanded a ladder made of gold signifying her smooth passage to heaven as the deceased had seen the birth of her great-grandson. All the rituals were religiously followed. In hosting distant and close relatives for 12 days of the mourning period and organising a lavish feast on the 13th day for about 500 people, Rashmi’s family had to spend over ₹1 lakh. Monthly prayers by the priest in the name of the deceased and offerings in terms of money, clothes, utensils, and other items continued for a year. On the first death anniversary, a grand feast was organised again for the community and more money and gifts were given to the priest. Rashmi said that the death-related expenditures were totally unplanned and she had to withdraw money from her savings earmarked for her daughter’s marriage.

Moga (name changed), a landless labourer, took loan from a moneylender to meet the expenses related to the cremation of his father. The priest told him that he needed to donate a cow to a Brahmin so as to ensure that his father’s soul went to the heaven. Failing to do this would mean that his father would remain impoverished in his next life as well. To provide solace to his father’s departed soul and possibly save him from the miseries in his next life, he followed the priest’s advice by taking a loan. Now his ten-year-old son is working as a labourer in a lock and key making factory to repay the outstanding loan amount. Case study 3

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Ramden (name changed) works at the brick kiln in his village. Poverty and starvation claimed the life of his young wife. He did not have money to buy sufficient wood for her cremation. Stray dogs ate the half-burnt portions of her body and seeing that, Ramden could only cry helplessly.

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Case study 1

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4.2.3 Analysis

Conclusions derived from the study of family and friends of deceased. It is apparent from the studies undertaken, that the crematorium workers are often looked over and forgotten by all sections of the society. It remains the basic need and understanding for an architect to take into account their lives and help make spaces that can make better their plight and daily workdays.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Moving into a post pandemic world, a crematorium should be prepared to handle situations where it can accommodate, • Larger numbers of bodies • Support numerous methods of cremations/ burials to stop the spread of diseases. • Provide and protect the crematorium staff members. • Make provisions for the isolation chambers / temporary places for living. • Make permanent living provisions if needed. • Be capable to house cremation areas, where isolated diseased bodies can be cremated, such that usual cremations are not affected wholly. 117

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Stakeholder 3

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Crematorium / burial ground workers

“I don’t understand why people hate me. Only because I burn the dead bodies? If I don’t do this, then who will?” - Ramananda Sarkar, crematorium worker, Assam. 118

Historians can find more official archival reports on mortuary workers during past epidemics, revealing the state’s dependency on them during crises. In the 1860s, as cholera ravaged Bengal, the Calcutta municipality expected the mortuary workers to work overtime to dispose of the bodies of cholera victims, without any compensation. Death workers in Calcutta refused to work till their salaries were increased. Similar instances of an assertion of rights during the bubonic plague epidemic at the turn of the 19th century. In 1898, buriers in present-day Latur refused to dig graves, complaining of the increased number of bodies due to the plague. Colonial sources do not suggest that local municipalities provided instructions or equipment for the safety of mortuary workers. Yet, erasures in other times continued. From the early twentieth century, British and Indian public health experts began to advocate for the gas crematoria to replace wooden pyres. Writings on them did not mention the tasks of workers.

4.3.1 Literature review

Recorded cases of lack of infrastructure during pandemics, historically. What researching cremations of the dead in colonial India taught me about life in our cities today.

Newspapers reported the installation of a crematorium in Bombay in 1953, the news carried all the details like cost, functions, the location, and price of land, but not a single mention on how many workers it takes to run the machine

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Sohini Chattopadhyay Columbia University Aug 23, 2020

During the massive Bengal Famine in 1943, there was a crisis in death disposal as many workers also died of starvation and disease. A relief worker commented in 1944 that it was difficult to gauge the number of people who died in the famine because village chowkidars and mortuary workers had succumbed to hunger. This reveals two crucial pieces of information that prevail to date. First, our present demographic understanding of the famine came from workers and experts who were intimately related to handling the dead body in both cities and villages. Second, scarcity is an endemic reality due to the unequal allocation of resources as part of the maintenance of caste hierarchy.

In times of epidemics and devastations due to natural disasters, the work of managing death entails a massive urgency and constant preparedness for a surge. The sheer number gives a sense of the significance of the work. Apart from the task of cremation, mortuary workers provide mortality data. Throughout the 19th century, colonial India faced massive deaths due to famine, cholera and fever. Public health officers relied on hereditary forms of stigmatised labour at burial and cremation grounds for the raw data, and no one else would do the work. Therefore, colonial administrators incorporated pre-colonial forms of mortuary work and their stigmatisation into the bureaucratic processes. 119

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Today, as economists and demographers peruse census reports and mortality tables, they have to acknowledge that these data were painstakingly collected by front line mortuary workers.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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(Top left) Newspaper snip showing the announcement of the first crematorium in Mumbai, highlighting its features. (Top Right) Kolkata’s Nimtala crematorium in 1945. Biswarup Ganguly. (Bottom) The ‘office’ room for mortuary workers at a Kolkata government hospital. During the great plague of 1898, the grave diggers worked in grounds where jackals roamed and dug up the bodies often for the meat. Image by Sohini C

The buriers pointed out the unsanitary conditions on the grounds. In many graveyards, the soil was shallow and jackals and dogs would uproot the dead, leading to the constant work of reburial and maintenance. In a few days, the local District Board conceded to their demands, and the salary was hiked to 15 rupees. Such stories of asserting rights in the face of excessive demand on essential work are hard to come by. Colonial archives rarely tell us about mortuary workers, as archives contain texts that underwrite caste and class prejudices. But documents written at the time of epidemics make it clear that mortuary workers were essential allies of the state, as informants and public health workers performing tasks that people from other castes would shun. They closely worked with law and order. During the bubonic plague epidemic, despite the deaths of mortuary workers recorded in some health reports, their role remained largely unacknowledged. One can find a rare snippet in an 1898 Bombay Plague Committee Report, which attributed the control of the disease in Surat District to the efficient work of burial and cremation workers and guards who painstakingly noted the causes of death and informed of symptoms to the health officers.

4.3.2 Literature review

The Silence of the Archives: Why the Grave Diggers of the Bubonic Plague are Unremembered Sohini Chattopadhyay Columbia University May 14, 2020

Despite being a primary informant, mortuary workers’ social marginality was central to how the law could disproportionately affect them. Hence, a historian tracing the lives of mortuary worker finds a better trail in the police and judicial archives, showing us how mortuary workers also bore the brunt of policing and social distrust. These records are complicated to parse because they contain lives that never wished to be narrated in the way they have been recorded. Therefore, stories

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Mahars of Bombay Presidency, who buried the human and animal dead, were essential to the colonial state as frontline health workers. They worked in filthy burial grounds, where jackals often dug up the dead In 1898, as the bubonic plague epidemic gripped India, buriers in Jaola (present-day Latur) refused to dig graves. They demanded higher wages as deaths soared uncontrollably at a time when it was unknown how the disease spread so rapidly. Given their acute risk of contracting the disease working in proximity to the bodies, the buriers said the existing salary of 12 rupees a month was not enough to ensure that families would survive. The buriers, mostly coming from the Mahar community in Bombay Presidency engaged

of mortuary workers emerge through their arrests, categorisation as members of “criminal tribes”, or indiscriminate stereotypes such as untrustworthy, prone to intoxication and violent behavior.

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in hereditary forms of stigmatized labour that included removing animal carcasses and the human dead.

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The official identification card of a crematorium repairman. Image by Sohini C. The image shows the lack of PPE kits being provided for the technicians who are tasked to operate and repair the electric and gas crematoriums.

4.3.3 Literature review

Do Mortuary Workers Come Last in the Covid19 fight? Sohini Chattopadhyay Columbia University May 08, 2020

Bengal were among the lowest in the country, and there is naturally fear about untested or asymptomatic cases. A comparison on India spend found Delhi tested 1,105 persons per million of population, the highest, and Bengal, 42 samples per million of population, the lowest. This report noted figures as of 17 April 2020.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

In West Bengal, mortuary workers are officially designated as Doms. All the mortuary assistants in Kolkata government hospitals are from one extended family, and they have been working these jobs for at least three generations if not more. It is a reservation that no complains about in the medical hierarchy.

At the largest government hospital in Kolkata, mortuary assistants started being given PPE kits only in the last week of April, the sixth week of an ongoing eight-week national lockdown in India. Mortuary assistants, who perform post mortems and help wheel out the dead and load them into hearses, are as indispensable as doctors in the healthcare system. Without them, bodies would pile up and putrefy, infection would grow unchecked, and the ecosystem of settlements, not only the healthcare system, would collapse.

The protocol for Covid deaths is that bodies are wrapped in special bags and cremated. No autopsies are to be performed for such deaths. But the body still needs to be cleaned and wrapped. This work is done by the Doms. Certain hospitals have been earmarked for Covid care. In these hospitals, PPE kits are said to have been distributed to the Dom cadre for Covid deaths. But in other hospitals which remained open for nonCovid care, no PPEs were made available to the Doms until the week of 27 April. Covid test rates in 122

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4.3.4 Case Study

A look into the daily activities of a cremation worker, during COVID-19 Pictures by Anupam Nath, AP Al jazeera October 5, 2020 Now, with a mask on his face and a prayer on his lips, he cremates bodies brought in by a handful of relatives in protective suits – hurried affairs conducted with minimal rituals under the state government’s guidelines.

Ramananda Sarkar never wanted to burn bodies for a living, but he was deep in debt and desperate for money.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Sarkar had fled his remote village in India’s northeastern Assam state after failing to pay back a loan he had taken to start selling sugarcane juice on a wooden cart. But even in the city of Guwahati, Sarkar had trouble finding work. Two years ago, he took up the job of lighting the funeral pyres.

Despite his vital community service, Sarkar’s own life continues to worsen. When his landlord heard what he did for work, he asked him to move out. A district official arranged a hotel room for him. Sarkar now lives along with some other crematorium workers, in a semi pucca house, with no windows nor proper sanitary features. Rampant alcoholism and drug use is common amongst the other crematorium workers, who are hereditary meant to do the job.

After knowing about his new job, Sarkar’s acquaintances started shunning him. Sarkar himself had to hide it from his family, who were back in a remote village in Assam.

Sarkar was also stopped from returning to his village to visit his family, first by the village head and then, after local authorities intervened on his behalf, by the villagers themselves. Still adamant, Sarkar took his bike and in late midnight went over to visit his family, breaking several COVID guidelines. He was forced to do such, since he had no other way to send money to his wife, back home.

After the pandemic began, Sarkar was put in the front line for cremations. HE even cremated many bodies without knowing they were COVID patients, without any PPE kits nor basic equipments like gloves and masks. The state authorities put him under quarantine for a few days. But they let him out as there was no one available to do his job at the cremation ground. 123

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Cremations start early in the morning and sometimes continue even in the night so that bodies aren’t piling up in mortuaries, Sarkar is only equipped with a mask, showing the careless attitude towards crematorium workers.

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(Above) The temporary house made for Sarkar and his coworkers, showing ill furnished and unsanitary conditions. (Below) Sarkars family in their kuccha house in the remote village of Assam. He has to return home after every couple of months to send money and meet his children.

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4.3.5 Analysis

Conclusions derived from the study of crematorium workers. It is apparent from the studies undertaken, that the crematorium workers are often looked over and forgotten by all sections of the society. It remains the basic need and understanding for an architect to take into account their lives and help make spaces that can make better their plight and daily workdays.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

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A funerary worker photographed by Arun Vijay Mathavan, April 2020

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(left)Krishna kills the evil king of Mathura Kansa, Mughal Painting, 1590. Folio of Harivamsa.

Vrindavan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh

Vrindavan, also called Brindaban, town in western Uttar Pradesh state, northern India. It is situated on the west bank of the Yamuna River, just north of Mathura. The origin of the word Vrindavan can be traced back to:

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

One of the gods who joined Lord Krishna in his Vrindavan lilas was Vrinda Devi. Considered a form of goddess Lakshmi, Vrinda Devi appears as a tulsi (sacred basil) plant that covered Vrindavan as an expansive jungle. Vrinda Devi helps the seeker to attain Krishna as she is still next to Him in truth, it is said that Krishna does not want to take food or flower offerings that are not accompanied by Tulsi. It is for this, vast forest of Tulsi that Vrindavan is named: Vrinda means Tulsi, or holy basil, and van is the word for a forest. Vrindavan was where Krishna lived his precocious childhood, and grew into the attractive and intoxicating youth who would lure young maidens into the forest to participate in his divine play and circle dance. For the devotees of Krishna, these events and the mythological participants in them are paradigms for the ideal religious setting and salvific imaginative relationships the devotee forms with the deity. The many temples in and around Vrindavan include the ruins of the Govind Dev (or Deva) Temple, which dates to the late 16th century. Vrindavan was the site where the founder of the Gaudiya sect, the Bengali poet-saint Caitanya, sent a group of theologians to reside. Those theologians became known as the Six Gosvamins of Vrindavan and were responsible for systematizing the beliefs and practices of the group.

Mathura is an important place of Hindu pilgrimage. Also known as the Brajbhoomi - the land where Lord Krishna was born and spent his youth. Mathura is located on the south of the city of Vrindavan, on the banks of River Yamuna. It was transformed into a place of great reverence after Lord Krishna was born there. Mathura is characterized by its picturesque Ghats, arched gateways and temple spires extending along the right bank of the River Yamuna. In ancient times Mathura was very strategically located, ie, at the cross roads of various trade routes ensured its position as a centre of trade and a meeting point for varied cultures. By the fifth century BC Mathura was a major metropolis and the capital of the Surasena Kingdom, one of the 16 Mahajanapadas. During the Kushana period Mathura became famous for the Mathura School of sculpture.

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(Pg 130) Map of Mathura, its major roadways and its abundance of temples. (Pg 131) The Ghats of Mathura - Oil Painting by Edwin Lord Weeks (left)Widows of Vrindavan, PHmuseum, Goeroge Kurien

5.2

Widows of Vrindavan Upon the death of her husband, the fate of the widow results into

Apart from its religious pilgrimages, Vrindavan is also known as the ‘City of Widows’, this is because of the large amounts of widows that move into the city and surrounding areas, including Mathura as well from different parts of India. Majority of the widows arrive from the states of West Bengal, Assam and Odisha.

Being evicted from her home, this is the situation when the widow’s sons, refuse to take care of her or in the case when there are no sons.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

These women after the deaths of their husbands live a life of restraint, where hey are barred from wearing coloured clothing (only white), eating of non vegetarian and other rich form of diets. Typically banished from their homes, by family members who refrain to look after them or prevent them from getting their shares of inheritance. They spend their lives with sparing amounts of income, ostracized from their families and the society too. They devote their lives to reciting hymns and praying to their saviour, Lord Krishna, believing that He is the only one to look after them.

They seem to rarely inherit their husband’s properties, this is seen as the widows are generally illiterate hence easily susceptible to financial harassment. They are deprived from the right to remarry, even if they are very young age. Along with this they are restricted from richer forms of diet, including a non vegetarian diet, wearing coloured clothing, celebrating festivals and in many cases to refrained to touch or cook others food. They face harassment in the form of being blamed for their husbands demise, even though being totally out of their control.

They mostly remain unemployed, they reside or involve themselves with ashrams to sing hymns and help around with temple duties. Considered They are extremely vulnerable to abuse and untouchables, in some beliefs, their only way to get violence. food or shelter is through a meager amount of food or money given to them by the Ashrams. For a widow, having children, they are usually left uneducated. Sati, the act where a widow burns herself alive along with the funeral pyre for her husband is now Medical care is scare to completely absent. long banned; it is not uncommon to hear that for the widows to be living in this state being far worse Widows like these are often ignored while going than sati. A wide range of reasons ranging from, through poverty statistics. For women serving family, cultural even government reforms have ashrams, they are seldom considered as poor, failed to provide for these women and they see although living in poor conditions and getting themselves outcast, trying to make ends meet. scarce amounts of nourishment. 133

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Photograph by Nikhil Yadav, Widows of Vrindavan

The widows generally have no employable skills that can ensure them proper paid jobs, coupled that with cultural stereotypes of untouchability. Finding employment outside of ashrams and bhajan ashrams where the only ways to earn an income is through singing, playing instruments, cleaning and cooking. Widows of lower age groups often seen themselves being the victims of sexual harassment, assault and exploitations. Mostly being illiterate, they are also easily duped by scammers. Sex trade through these women is also prevalent in Vrindavan, where they can be seen trying to earn their daily wages in the red light areas. These are places where many young girls are trafficked into the city from different parts of the nation as well as areas in Nepal and Bangladesh. High rents and overcrowded number of women in the cities, makes it difficult for women who are looking for living quarters. Hence, it is common for women to share rooms, and live in spaces that are sub-par and unhygienic.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Common diseases seen in women living in these spaces are Tuberculosis, Asthma and HIV/AIDS. Healthcare cannot fully provided for these widows due to their almost non existent income levels, no pension support etc. NGO services also fall short as they cannot provide treatments for severe diseases and ambulances for travel. These women remain not looked after their whole lives, and even after their deaths, this remains same. From accounts of bodies tied up in bags and disposed to improper burials are common news, as the women are financially incapable of providing for themselves. The state has been unable to properly uplift these women, as they’ve gone largely unnoticed by the reforms that look into bettering their livelihoods and give a chance to make a living. NGOs although try their hardest, they are limited in their resources and can only help a small portion of the thousands of women, that need their help. They help provide, education, skills for jobs, daily allowances, places to live/rest and even help them in their cremation rites once they pass away. 136

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Some harsh truths regarding the community of widows in Vrindavan and Mathura,

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5.3 Literature review

Dignity in death Ensuring a proper cremation for the widows

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Supreme court in 2012 passed a bill making it compulsory for a widow in Vrindavan, Mathura to get a decent cremation. Along with it made it compulsory to provide for daily meals, clothing and access to basic healthcare for the women. This decision saw being put into effect right after a PIL was registered claiming their pathetic state and that women, after their deaths due to extremely low amount of funds, were not being given a cremation, rather their bodies were just disposed off in bags.

The Bench asked the Nalsa counsel to contact the International Society for Krishna Consciousness and Sulabh International, an NGO, which had set up public toilets all over the country, to find out whether they could come forward to help the 1,790-odd widows living in deplorable conditions in the four government shelters at Vrindavan.

NGOs like Sulabh International and Pyaari maa have done a lot to help the conditions of these women, from educating them, help develop skills like weaving, computer skills etc to even ensuring The Supreme court commented how the women they get daily meals and places to live. They also that dedicate their lives serving and singing hymns organize festivals and trips for the women, who are dedicated to Lord Krishna, should not suffer a fate always seemingly trapped in the city, that ignores where they have to constantly beg and survive on their existence. Along with the services mentioned, a day to day basis, and can attain a dignified death they also organize clothing donations that go when they eventually pass on. The court pulled up directly to the women in need and annual medical the National Commission for Women and the Uttar camps that give health checkups to all the women. Pradesh State Women’s Commission for “doing nothing” for the destitute women except preparing They even fight for the right for these women, some reports about their pathetic conditions. encouraging remarrying of young widows, arranging their weddings, where all the other widows are also invited. References: Ensure at least proper last rites to Vrindavan widows: Supreme Court, J. Venkatesan, The Hindu, August 04, 2012 137

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“What have I done to deserve this? How can I describe to anyone how great my pain was? After three years Krishna appeared to me and said that I should come here. That was in 1955. I’ve been here for forty years now.” - Kamala Ghosh, widow, Vrindavan (Excerpt taken from ‘The Age of Kali: Indian

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

travels and encounters’ by William Dalrymple)

illustration by author Photograph by MAREE, maree.studio, The widows of Vrindavan, 2016 138

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(left)Igualada Cemetery, Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos, 1994.

6. Literature review

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Case Studies Topics covered in the chapter

Abstract

Case studies of the following buildings • Public crematorium in Coimbatore by Mancini enterprises. • Ashwinikumar crematorium in Surat by Matharoo associates • Igualada cemetery in Catalina, Spain by Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos • Mahaprasthanam crematorium and cemetery in Hyderabad by DA studios • Cemetery at Altach, Austria by Bernardo Bader Architekten • Crematorium Siesegem, Aalst, Belgium, by KAAN architects.

After looking into the funeral industry, and realising its shortfalls, it is fair to ask if any crematorium design, tries addressing these issues and aims at bettering the funeral experience while serving its users aptly. This chapter, looks at already attempted designs and focuses their approaches to site planning, care for the users involved in the project, the architectural and mythological relationship and the versatility of the crematorium/cemetery in catering to different religions of different backgrounds.

To analyse • Issues recognised in the preceding sections • Program design • Site planning • How the users experience is improved • Construction techniques • Sustainable features • Poetry and the sense of mythology being reflected in design • Develop an understanding of a sacred/ritualistic space . And how to design them

For the case of India, it is also made essential to analyse if the crematoriums/ cemeteries made an active approach in encouraging the use of other cremation/burial methods. Also the approach to whether the design is able to cater to traditional norms and allow for slight changes in the process. The aim of the study is to come up with an approach that is the best while designing a crematorium/ cemetery and the required spaces that are a must to help/provide for all the users and the activities attached to them.

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6.1. Public Crematorium for G.K.D. charity trust, Coimbatore

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

project info:

Text from the architects:

Completion year: 2013 Client: G.K.D. charity trust Architecture and landscape design: Mancini enterprises pvt. ltd. Site area: 4856 sqm

”Chennai-based studio Mancini enterprises pvt. ltd. has constructed a public crematorium in Coimbatore, south India. Located in a dense part of the city, the design offers a dignified environment, which evokes the traditional setting of river banks where cremations were previously performed before the growth of the city. Two large pavilions in form-finished concrete provide a space for final rituals to be carried out before the body is taken to the furnace area, often in attendance by a large amount of mourners. The following morning family members collect the ashes form the administration building and proceed into the garden where smaller pavilions shelter the required rituals.”

Image and reference text sources: Archdaily.com Designboom.in Architecture.in 142

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

About the crematorium The crematorium is open to religions of all kinds and being a part of a charity trust, it gives back most of its profits to the government and other charitable works. The crematorium has an electric cremation machine, which is operate from the basement. Traditional funeral pyres which are made incase a traditional funeral needs to be done. Along with the crematorial spaces, it includes a ‘walk of remembrance’ offering a place of solitude and mnemonic, which is unusual and rarely seen in crematoriums. Parking and administration spaces are included in the entrance areas, any cremation space is isolated from the above mentioned spaces to ensure privacy and to avoid crowding. A large hall as a congregational and waiting space is also provided where family members can wait in case of traditional as well as electric cremation.

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Context About the site, it lays in a densely populated urban area, surrounded by slums and other informal housing settlements. The site itself had a lot of greenery in it and the architects vision included the choice to preserve as much of the existing fauna as possible. The access to the site is through a narrow road that is directly connected to the main road on its Northern side.

context map detailing the site area, main access and the residential areas surrounding the site.

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About the Users Surrounding the site, as mentioned are people belong to the lower income groups, living in informal settlements. The design looks into the fact and has placed the cremation spots a the rough center of the site, to minimize the smoke from going into the settlements. The electric crematorium is equipped with a massive chimney, with multiple filters to make the smoke coming out as safe as possible for the residents nearby. As the site surrounding has developed over the years, more residential and commercial areas have popped up, making the area more crowded. The design isn’t able to address this effect properly, as the site has massive compound walls to isolate itself from the surrounding activities. For the families of the deceased, the crematorium has a sensitivity towards them, with providing, landscaping is done to give a person their privacy and quiet. Along the building’s perimeter are benches where one can rest and take their time to gain composure and reflect. Each cremation spot has its a specific position, and is designed to not cause any inconvenience in case multiple cremations are underway. The zoning is also highly efficient to reduce the circulation on site.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

image showing the auxiliary space between two cremation pavilions.

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Zoning Cremation halls include spaces that have activities of cremation and congregation in them, which being the traditional funeral pyres and the electric cremators.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The toilets are mirrored flanking the two sides of the electric crematorium. As the crematorium is operated from the basement. It allows for the space on the ground level to be opened up for circulation and to get done with the services. With the staircases leading to the control rooms for the electric crematoriums right next to the toilets. Parking spaces are housed as close to the entrance of the site, with the limit of the site area, the alloted area is less, and would cause inconveniences whenever a larger crowd is in presence.

For areas that fall under remembrance are materialized in the pavilions that come in the ‘path of remembrance’. These can serve as waiting areas, or for conducting rituals as memorial services for the dead. The significant landscaping additions are done in support of the site zoning, where a long vertical strip divides the site’s two major zones, ie, the cremation areas and the other spaces that don’t have the cremation activity in them. With thick existing and added on fauna in and around the site, greenery in the south and western and eastern sides were maintained to allow for selective light entry and also because of the residential settlements around the site.

The Administration area and the services entry is closest to the main entrance to allow for minimal circulation. The administration area houses spaces like a reception, waiting areas, offices and spaces for common staff areas.

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About the landscape design

Image 1 shows one type of landscaping near the entrance and compound walls. Image 2 shows the landscaping in between buildings in and around the administration area.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The site has in many areas which are mostly negative spaces, seen the addition of landscaping. The whole idea in terms of greenery seems to be very barren or even wild-like, where tall grass or overflowing grass takes over the ground plane, distorting it to seem as a natural site instead of a constructed one. This is done in places serving remembrance and allows a pause midst the funerary activity. The other type of landscaping as seen in the picture above, is made to be very minimalistic and easy to look after, in terms of maintenance. The textures of the gravel, the squared stone pathways are tactile, making it absolutely clear the direction of travel, highlighting the journey while keeping the destination always in view (by not letting the fauna interfere). Allowing a metaphor of how one’s death is their journey’s end.

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About the architecture of the crematorium The crematorium has a language of modernism and brutalism in its scale, form and materials. From the abundant concrete panels as finishes to the stone textures that lay as a separator and as a momentary pause between the administration areas and the cremation site. The long vertical Jali like form creates a balance with the overly horizontal spread of the cremation areas. The Jali like pattern also allows for maximum air flow among spaces, as the dense fauna restrict the harsh wind from entering the interiors. The jali pattern also resemble criss crossed fingers, which is often the symbol associated with praying. The whole site is meant to be quiet, reflective, pious and allows the elements of air and sound travel in from one space to the other.

The small cutouts to allow liquid to drain out naturally is also a conscious choice to lower the maintenance of the platform and the surrounding building. While also making it easier to clean up for the workers, so that the next cremation in line doesn’t get delayed.

The stone platform as shown in the diagram hold up the body that is being cremated. The black granite stone finish, stands out from the mostly gray building, giving it the visual and metaphorical focus as the gateway to the other side. Design wise, the granite is a strong and longer lasting material that can easily withstand temperatures from the funeral. 148

The Coimbatore crematorium is a serviceable attempt at changing the overall aesthetic and the experience offered at the crematorium as a service. It provides a very contemporary and at the same time modern upgrade that doesn’t seem tacky and goes harmoniously with the subject matter at heart. The architecture is seen as sensitive, guiding, pious and fulfilling for the activity it serves. The path of remembrance is also a welcome addition as the crematorium bearing in a value in itself that it can be a space for remembrance, nostalgia and to gain inner peace, providing a simple pavilion goes a long way in making a crematorium a place connected to the individuals that visit it. Where the building falls short is doesn’t cater to the workers in the crematorium, the reason for the choice could’ve been the limited area of the site and the huge amount of flora around the site that couldn’t be touched. It is not uncommon for the crematorium workers to stay on-site, who also act as watchmen at night after the crematorium closes. The design also couldn’t really aim for any form of future expansion or for the allowing of other forms of cremation that might become commonplace. Example, the MOKSHDA cremation system is still new and relatively unknown, and the more they are installed and placed, the more the people are aware about them and more the become commonplace in the practice.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

For the people and activities surrounding the site, the building also falls short in addressing them. For its placement, the place developed around it which caused the site to be isolated and walled up. It is difficult for a crematorium, to be in a bustling commercial and residential area, and isolating itself is a common symptom that is observed.

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Conclusion

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2 Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

6.2. Ashwinikumar crematorium, Surat project info:

Text provided by the architect

Completion year: 2000 Architecture and landscape design: Matharoo associates Site area: 5260sqm

“Although there is no archetypal form for a crematorium, the cremation place is marked by a pavilion-like structure standing in open ground outside the city limits. However, in most cities today, these sites have been engulfed by urban growth, making the pavilion lose its symbolic significance. The first gesture of the design was to re-articulate the essential identity of the crematorium in the context of its urban setting. This was done by creating a large clearing. This plane was isolated from the surrounding building and road by structures incorporating all auxiliary functions. The site thus became introvert, looking only in the direction of the river. On this plane were then arranged the functions that would fulfill the essential rites of cremation – the basic lines that structured the building being drawn from the skewed angles of the site.”

Image and reference text sources: Matharoo associates ebuild.in architexturez.net 150

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Context: The Ashwinikumar crematorium lies on the banks of river Tapi, in Surat. The surrounding of the site is laced with industrial and commercial plots, which makes it an unlikely place for cremation related activity. The site has a backdrop of a steel bridge which is constantly in use. The surrounding industrial setting does come useful as this means that the density of people surrounding the site is less and buildings are prepared to tackle with smoke and other pollutants. The people here will be more equipped and aware of the situation of the area and take steps to reduce any form of contaminant inhalation. The setting of being on the edge of Tapi gives it a metaphorical and spiritual meaning, relating itself to the holiness of the river. Although the river receives a lot of waste from the industrial buildings around, the rivers water isn’t for consumption without purification. Hence, why scattering of shes there was a conscious choice by the architect.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

context map detailing the site area, main access and the commercial areas surrounding the site.

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About the User The Site is situated in a commercial and industrial sector, which means the density of people living near the crematorium is null. The activities around the site is also limited and this ensures the amount of air pollution being released, does not directly first harm the people living nearby. The use of Gas furnaces predominantly allows for less pollutions of the river tapi and the atmosphere. The people visiting the crematorium, have a sense of warmth in the crematorium, from allowing places to sit, read, weep and reminisce. The extending lawns in the site allows for informal seatings, organization of other funeral customs and the attendance of many people for the cremation. The small walk to the river tapi, and the experience while coming back up allows the user to experience the holy, give their salutations and head back home without any interruptions. Not much is known about how the design habitats the crematorium workers. Being an industrial and commercial area, it is probable the workers live somewhere else and come to work, as per their time shifts demands.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

image showing the waiting area and reception of Ashwinikumar Crematorium, it shows how the lobby tapers into the next oncoming space, creating a sense of curiosity and being unsure of what lies ahead.

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About the zoning The administration, waiting and entrance of the site. The site has a large welcoming entrance and the path converges as the user moves along to the cremation site. This invokes a sense of the intending activity, the path of moving onto the next realm. Something unique unseen in many crematoriums is a reading area, which is open to anyone and everyone to sit and read scriptures and other related literature. The primary cremation technique followed here is a gas cremation, which goes in the way of making gas cremations more accessible to the people, trying to spread the word of the more efficient and ecologically friendly cremation techniques. This method is done in two stages one on a open platform to complete the required funeral rites and then to the gas chamber to burn the body. This is open to interpretation for different religions.

The chambers are surrounded by concrete shells in the shape of arcs that shroud the space to create privacy and also the maintain the heat and light in the entire building. The Site also has traditional cremations but they are scattered along the northern edge of the building. Alongside the administration areas are the kitchen and storage areas. They are made to be easily accessible from the main road, such to reduce the amount of space taken to park a truck/ tempo in the site. The meditation areas an open river side area are placed close to the river edge, being separate from the activities of the site, they can used by people who are done with the funeral rites or any visitor, wanting a rest or some peace of mind.

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About the crematorium

Image showing the gas cremators, showing how they let in minimal amounts of light, create room like spaces for every cremation in process. It also shows how the architecture is just simple forms that blend into each other in harmony.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The design and need for the crematorium began after the violent communal riots and the flood in Gujarat. It saw the need of solitude in religious harmony and the need for respecting the elements of nature. The site does that in its purest form. Being on the edge of River Tapi, it respects it incoming and outgoing tides, including them as poetry in the way the cremations are done. The river is celebrated in its scenic and metaphoric beauty, allowing the families of the deceased to look into the mode of transport of the deceased into the other realm. The idea of oneness is shown throughout, the site does not constrict itself to one type of religious funeral customs, its is only limited in the term of burning a body. For it the most emphasis is given to the gas furnace cremators, something unseen in any other religion. Although allowing for traditional pyres, they are way less in numbers compared to the gas furnace. The crematorium has no limit/ restrictions to who can enter its premises, allowing knowledge and a decent cremation ceremony to anyone, it seems to bridge the gap of religious and communal gaps, by allowing them to come together into experiencing grief, loss and then overcoming it. 154

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The poetry of Ashwinikumar Crematorium Ar. Matharoo put poetry and mysticism in his work while designing the crematorium, he talks extensively about his design principles and the significance of the forms, while leaving a lot in interpretation of the user that may visit the place for their own reasons. He talks about the entrance as a space that is exists within itself, sustaining its own. While masking what lies ahead much like the concept of death, something that cannot be predicted or looked into. The gas chambers, are designed to be like a crescent palm of a hand watching over a flame, facing the river it promises the view of the realm to come, allowing slivers of natural light into the furnace chamber, only partially lighting the machine and the deceased. They are also positioned in a way that even though 5 cremators are placed one next to each other, no one interferes into the other, separated by screen like walls and the concave like form, makes a separate room within itself for the deceased and their family and friends.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Pavilion for cremation, is nearest to the River Tapi. The changing tides of Tapi seem to the connect the pavilion to the river, as if the river seemingly coming up to claim the ashes of the dead in the pavilion. The meditation area, facing the Tapi river, are made to look as of floating and have formed by folding the earth's crust, seeming to exist in a plane between the earth and heavens, and also made to be a connection with the divine. The ramp that connects the user to from the gas chamber to the river basin, narrows down while going down to take a bath or scatter ashes, concentrating the user to focus to look within or to introspect into the feeling of grief. And while coming back up, the path widen up to show a wider perspective, a newer view of the world, after the loss/ suffering of losing someone.

(1) View of the wating area (2) View of the gas crematoria (3) View from the gas cremation area overlooking the river (4) The view from the banks of river Tapi 155

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Significance of the monolith The monolith on the side of the crematorium facing the river acts as a place marker for the crematorium. It acts as a backdrop, a symbol for the cremations that take place there daily. IT is also a navigation tool for people who come by road from the other side. The monolith also acts as a symbol of strength as it is the first thing in frame while coming up from the main ramp. Showing the user how they have transitioned into a strong being after going through grief.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

About the landscaping All the planned landscaping on site was designed to be simple with the least amount of maintenance, this is done to maintain the rustic and brutalist look if the site and also to make it easier for the crematorium to maintain its look, without the need for special landscape treatments. The crematorium uses the landscaping to support the main structure, by making them spaces of reflection, waiting and finding solace after the act of cremation itself. The supporting garden and reflections are that was proposed wasn’t built, but in the process models, the ideas of simplicity and practicality are also seen there along with an extension for the parking. 156

Image showing the concrete monolith in the process model, showing how it acts as a place maker for the crematorium, allowing for easy navigation to the site and it acting as a symbol for communal solace.

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About the architecture of AshwiniKumar crematorium The design and form the building here is of Modernist and Brutalist values; the buildings materials that of unfinished raw concrete facades and ceilings give a sense of the raw and unfiltered activity of cremating someone. The absence of any beautification, shows the naked truth of the activity that is being served inside the site. The design language is very strong and assertive, it stresses on the use of gas cremations, making them the center of the site. The pathways all converge into the destination, almost choking the user while walking along the path to the next step being taken. Along with it all the site still maintains its piousness by allowing for privacies for multiple cremations, allows a direct walkway/ramp to the river for scattering of ashes, allowing for traditional burials, even though being scarce. The building is welcoming by allowing the user plenty activities to rest, read, wait.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

After all the funeral rites, the building also provides the family members of the deceased to rest and to eat. The canteen with its large flat ground allows for a place to sit, think back and even move on for the user, who has just suffered loss.

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An Overview of the process model , showing the proposed structure along with it an open green space next to it, that was never built.

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3D printed models (top) showing the front elevation of the crematorium and (bottom) the back elevation facing the river.

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Conclusion Matharoo associates have set an example and a important lesson when looking into communal unity and the sense of religious oness. It also enforces the idea of the future where one isn’t being restricted to only traditional methods of funerals. The design also pays an honor to its surroundings, majorly the river Tapi and looks into creating it the vision and the backdrop to the purpose of the cremations. The architecture is made to be highly efficient, poetic and clear. It doesn’t bound itself to existing norms of design and religion. Although the change in design has seen it being highly appreciated and celebrated as a religious architecture the later hasn’t seen much praise, in turn it is difficult for people to accept newer methods, to make shift from traditional methods. Although the acceptance to newer and more efficient methods are on the rise, Ashwinikumar’s attempt can even be put as much ahead of its time to be that bold to attempt something unknown, at least in India. The simplicity in the planning and the existence of the forms can be easily interpreted and experienced when walking the halls, corridors, ramps and stairs of the building.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

In its current state, the building suffers from ill maintenance, from black soot covering the ceilings to even partly destroyed parts of the crematorium. Which points to the fact that the crematorium isn’t preferred by the people in Surat. It is something to be analyzed while working on a design as to the end user and their ability of acceptance, perhaps Matharoo associates were incorrect in their judgement.

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6.3. Mahaprasthanam crematorium, Hyderabad project info:

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Completion year: 2015 Architecture and landscape design: DA Studios, Hyderabad Site area: 14,900sqm

Text provided by the architect “design & architecture studios, under commission from the phoenix foundation, modernized a neglected cemetery and crematorium in india. the 3.7 site was approached with the intent to build infrastructure to accommodate hindu rituals both culturally and contextually. in the philosophy of gita, life’s purpose is fulfilled in a 16 phase process called shodasha samskara. Antyeșṭi, the final stage of life, is the funeral which is subdivided into five sequential parts: preparation, cremation, mourning, purification, and commemoration. ‘mahaprasthanam’, follows this order in a series of structures that both mourn and celebrate the individual. Each symbolizes the significance of love and of loss, and reiterates the fact that death is a natural, unavoidable consequence of the continuity of life.”

Image and reference text sources: architizer.in buildofy - youtube channel thinkmatter.in 160

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Context The site is surrounded by hilly rocky terrain on the northern facade, the whole site slopes down from north and over to the East. The road connecting to the site is a busy road, which connects to the main highway. The site was initially an allocated cemetery and the brief called for a crematorium, which wouldn’t disturb the existing graves. The site plan was derived by plotting the graves and designing the crematorium in the remaining negative spaces. The spaces around the site are mostly empty and are surrounded by the plateau like vegetation which is scarce. This makes sure that the contaminated air being released into the atmosphere does not directly affect people living around and also that the graves could not pollute the underwater sources. Now with the changes with the passing of time, the city bounds have spread, coming closer to the crematorium on the southern side. Still the other surrounding areas are still vacant and now covered with lush greenery. This separates it from the settlements.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The proximity to the city was one of the reasons for the cremations initiation, to make the travel times lesser to complete the funerary rites, while proving a space that dignifies the death and the passing of the loved one.

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context map detailing the site area, main access and the natural and man made areas surrounding the site.

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About the user DA studios in their approach to the crematorium, placed their central attention to the family of the deceased who come to the crematorium as its users and made them the primary concern. The site planning and the programme responds well to their needs, allowing many spaces for all their funeral activities, traditions and customs are given allocated spaces, with breathing areas for them to be conducted peacefully. Walls are erected, especially such that one’s privacy isn't disturbed, when they bid farewell to their loved ones. The design though fails to bring pople of other religions into picture, while drawing its meaning and design intent from hindu traditions, any one from other faiths might feel alienated in the site. The site also fails to address the graves, leaving then unattended, with no on look for allowing more burials. The site is in an arid location with no other plot around it being used. This also makes it safer as no one is in contact with the smoke or other polluting factors, around the site. The design does not address the workers of the crematorium although, spaces such as dedicated offices, eating areas etc are not provided. This makes it seem that the design fails to consider them as users, while making them seen as afterthoughts.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

A hindu ritual for the final funeral rites being carried out on site, showing how the spaces accpunt for all the activities for its visitors.

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Zoning The administration and canteen see themselves divided in the two extremes of the site, this has been done to allow for the required programme to be followed. The administration is one of the first in programme hence placed after the entrance pavilion. And the canteen sees itself in use the last, when all the funeral ceremonies are finished and the people attending the ceremony can congregate, get food and leave the premises. In the cases of electric cremations, the family members usually have to wait for the ashes to be cleaned and brought out, after the cremation process. Many a times the cremation facility asks the people to wait for some hours to even come and pick up the ashes on the next day. The crematoriums are placed in and around the site this is to provide privacy and to allow the activity to continue without, disturbing the activities going around the site. The site has 2 traditional pyres, for a funeral using wooden pyres, a public pyre, which is much smaller and an electric crematorium. All the three are designed to be at different extremetes of the site, where the ones following wooden cremations are kept closest to the road access for ease of transport of wood and the body.

The site shows it sensitivity to the users of the site, spaces for rest, contemplation are meticulously planned out and the designs true mastery is providing screen like walls where the said user can enjoy some privacy without being interfered by any other means. The provision of auxiliary rooms like bathing, changing areas, waiting areas that are separated from the cremation area and ceremonial yard, all provide and extend the idea of the privacy on-site. The choice to have a road layout that envelops the entire site was done to make sure in case of emergencies, the required transport service has ease of access and also any form of supplies for the wooden puyres can be brought and stored right at the place of cremation. The existing graves near the main road, act like a buffer for the crematorium, cloaking the sounds and the heat of the busy road, and isolating the site around its natural beauty.

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About the architecture Mahaprasthanam pays precedence of the 3 basic emotions that a person goes through when he/ suffers a loss in their family, them being the feeling of knowledge of loss, then the feeling of experiencing grief and lastly the after the cremation ceremony, being relieved knowing the said deceased person is one with God. These 3 feelings were taken in the main ideologies and converted into simple forms that became the said, entrance pavilion, the electric crematorium and the traditional wooden pyre. Illustrated are the three forms that were derived from the emotions explained in the above paragraph. The entrance pavilion at the beginning, seems as if the walls are collapsing, the weight of the world as if being tipped over and the user has this narrowing walkway to enter the crematorium. The second form, for the electric crematorium shows the grief a person goes through, after experiencing loss of a loved one. It is articulated by the a building shape that seems to be falling over, in pain.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The last articulation for the traditional pyre, opens itself to the sky, as if allowing the deceased person’s soul ascend the heavens and also metaphorically showing the burden lifted off the family members, knowing the deceased in a good place, a place of God.

Illustrations highlighting the three forms of (1) entrance pavilion (2) Electric crematorium (3) and the wooden funeral pyre.

The design aims at an harmony amongst the existing and newer constructed elements of the site mainly the flora and the graves and the newly constructed crematorium. The project handles this subject really delicately, making it absolutely clear the intention and meaning of the entire crematorium. The poetry in the architecture lies in the way the three forms interact with each other, because they do not. No person would visit all three structures to connect the dots and realize the reasoning., that lead to the design. All construction has been done using pre-cast concrete panels, this was done to allow for quicker construction and also because of the existing graves, a long site development work wasn’t preferred. Also pre-cast panels were easily made to be in the angles the form required them to be, without the need for setting up formworks on site. 164

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Conclusion The architecture of Mahaprasthanam is simple and direct. A blend of pure architectural forms that create a mystery in the minds of the user, springing a thought of what they mean. With shlokas embossed on the faces of the walls, no part of the site seems lets the user feel lost, allowing salvation either in its spaces and texts. The design falls short in catering to the burials onsite, nothing has been done to add to the burials as the site has transitioned to a Hindu crematorium, it may seem unknown and unwelcoming to other faiths. The design also fails to address better living and working conditions for crematorium workers, falling short in providing spaces for rest and eat.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The design also creates disparity in its zoning, by providing two types of funeral pyres that cremate using wood, where one is the larger space, with the exaggerated form that signifies the step of being freed/ is opened up to the sky and the other a smaller form of the same module. The smaller module is named as the public pyre and its reason to be separated from the site isn’t properly mentioned. The reason for a provision can be to cater to people who come to the crematorium and necessarily cannot afford a typical wooden cremation. This argument also falls flat as in cases like these the aim of the design should not be to make these disparities visible, but to include them and make the program more accessible for all the people coming in to bid farewell to their loved ones. The feeling of guilt one might experience for not being able to give a ‘lavish’ funeral to their family member or friend can be traumatizing. Instead steps must be taken to use the wooden pyres, earnings as a find that could then help out to anyone who wanted to chose a wooden funeral but necessarily couldn’t afford one; or should have taken the stance to encourage the use of electric cremations as it is much cheaper and environmentally safer.

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6.4. Igualada cemetery, Spain project info:

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Completion year: 1994 Architecture and landscape design: Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos

Text provided by the architect “As part of a competition to replace an older cemetery, Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos envisioned a new type of cemetery that began to consider those that were laid to rest, as well as the families that still remained. The Igualada Cemetery is a project that challenges the traditional notions of what makes a cemetery. Miralles and Pinos conceptualized the poetic ideas of a cemetery for the visitors to begin to understand and accept the cycle of life as a link between the past, present, and future.”

Image and reference text sources: Le Cimetiere D’igualada, the documentary archdaily.com divisare.com landezine.com Cpinos.com 166

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Context In the town of Igualada in Catalina, Spain, a population of about 40,000 residents, saw their existing cemetery couldn't match the needs of the future. A new cemetery had to be planned. So, while expanding and adding a commercial and industrial zone, a 4 hectare land of high contoured, rocky land was allotted to be the extension as a new cemetery. The brief was floated as a design competition, and the winner was the team of Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos. The site was surrounded by the river Odena and it went around the site, drawing its perimeter and defining the site boundaries. The design sought to isolate itself amongst the surrounding commercial lands and made it one with the surrounding rich flora. The same can still be noticed today, as the site seems deserted when satellite data is studied. The townsfolk followed the burial method where caskets are sealed off in catacombs. Traditionally almost as shelves, this type of funerals require a larger space over time. As time went on and the news about this cemetery spread, it was and still is hailed as one of the best examples of funerary architecture, one that brings within itself immense amounts of poetry and mysticism.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

context map detailing the site area, main access and the natural and man made areas surrounding the site.

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About the Cemetery The design proposal was selected for its unusual appearance of the plan and the drawings submitted as entries, it was something completely unique and unseen in the methods of designing cemeteries. The architects argued that death is the act of now being one with nature, and the cemetery should also reflect the same. This was achieved by burying the rows of caskets seemingly in earth. The cemetery moved on from the traditional cemetery aesthetic and change it by bring a sense of poetry in every inch of the design. A grade deal of thought was put into looking after the dead and the people that come to visit them. Although the now existing site is not built, and many changes were made to the original design submission, the site still upholds its values that were aimed to achieve while conceptualizing. The site also suppose to have a chapel and an autopsy lab, which were partially constructed and soon abandoned after construction respectively.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing the catacomb like graves of the cemetery and the pathway, which is covered with trees.

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About the zoning

(earlier page) The plan of Igualada Cemetery, which was submitted by Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos. (Above) The plan and setions of the cul de sac at the end of the pathway of phase 1. (next page) view of culde sac.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Blue areas were the later added on autopsy center and the chapel. Although both were already designed in the competition proposal, limited budget and long construction time forced them to be a part of the second phase. The autopsy center was abandoned within a year of opening, the reason being unknown, And the chapel never saw completion. This was due a myriad of reasons which started from construction difficulties, limited budget and the ever growing need for spaces, that the original proposal couldn’t account for. Red strips show the cemeteries in the form of long hallways, that extend along the direction of the river that flows around the site. The cemeteries were the integral part of the proposal and their design was widely accepted by the jurors and the townsfolk. Although due to budget constraints the design had to be rectified to allow for more construction, without stepping into newer parts of the site. Later on the plans were referred to for extension construction. The green patch is the main circulation space, that connects the site and houses the pedestrian circulation. It is of two varieties, one being gravel and the other a concrete based flooring with iron railways tracks embedded in them. The other type of flooring is seen more commonly spread in the plan.

At the end of the pathway in the first phase of the plan, the pathway ends at a cul de sac where family cemetery and public graves are provided. These spaces were up for hire who would rather wanted to be buried with their family members, these were houses in a cave like structure that could be booked and house multiple bodies. and many individual bodies were housed at the base of the the said cul de sac. It was already known that the graves wont be a popular choice and it was reflected in the planning, by proving a minimal amount. 170

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About the architecture of the cemetery The igualada cemetery has been known and appreciated for being able to breakdown the ideas of death, grief, nature and the idea of a community into an architectural entity. From the decision taken to choose materials of concrete, stone, wood all from the site or ts surroundings helped the site to maintain its true nature. With the cemeteries buried amongst the natural contours of the site, and the long passageways with rows of cemeteries on either gives the idea of the journey one has to go through to end up in a cemetery and makes the user see and appreciate this talked about journey.

own isolation from the passing time and winds to stay and look back in remembrance. The flooring pattern here is of gravel concrete, something tactile, with scattered wooden planks, which are the same ones used to lay railway tracks on. This was done to have a connection with the town and at the same time the change of textures allows for the user to know and be aware of changes in the spaces as he/she walk along the passage. ALong the passage are also metal formations that are seemed to be scattered around. This is done to allow for more tactile features.

The entrance is placed at the highest contour, from here the entire site can be seen, moving down the individual cemeteries come up on either sides of the passage. Another row of cemeteries line up above the rows (An addition that was done later due to constraints). Amongst the lower rows gives way for accessing the upper rows. A modular system was designed by the architects along wth the future expansion plans if and when the current cemeteries fill up more can be added. Along the hallway are many slender and tall trees with bushy tops, this is done to isolate the passageway from the site, giving the user his/her privacy and his

Moving ahead of the passage come a cul de sac bordered by piled up rocks, seemingly held up by steel bars. All stones used in the walls were fetched from the site while construction. Inside these caves are specialized vault like cemeteries, that can used to house families cemeteries, a more premium burial spot. The cul de sac also has a communal grave, the more traditional burial method, which is very less in number and to till this date has seen not one claim.

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Enric Miralles in his lifetime, talked extensively about the Igualada cemetery, showing his initial concepts, his practice and understanding of time as a integral chapter in his architectural works. Igualada cemetery is in his own words, represents the nature of past, present and future. The entire site was developed to be timeless. Timelessness is achieved in two manners, one is to have a something to stand the test of time and be relevant and as graceful after centuries, or something that develops or accepts the grace of time and the changes it brings along with itself. The Igualada achieved the latter. Each and every part of the cemetery was designed and intended to fall in the hands of time, weathering and the surroundings of Catalina. From the gates, that are intentionally rusted, to the secondary gates that in turn became crosses, mark the entrances of the fate. Vegetation is allowed to engulf parts of the site, and allow rust and weathering on the cemeteries and their entrances.

The flooring choice of the cemetery also reflects this, the continuous graveled concrete pathway, with scattered huge planks of wood create this sensual mystery as well as induce the sensation of being in a place that arouses the users senses. The cemeteries are purposely placed in an oblong manner seeming to be monoliths that have existed there since eternity, the reason of the oblong tilt was to allow for a sense of being constricted, even though the passages are the wide, they appear to be not, with the added vegetation and the patterns in the flooring. Throughout the times of the day, the trees diffuse patterns all over the cemeteries, adding life to the seemingly dead and brutal cemeteries. The cemeteries themselves play with shadows allowing for dynamic patterns that change throughout the day. These were added to make the igualada have a connection with time, its shadows inviting and distorting how the passage looks at every time of the day.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

When a user enters the site, his position to be above the site and looking onto it while descending down to access the cemetery is an allegory of the person that has been buried, to look over the entire life, to descend into the acceptance of the loss and to grieve. Time has seen to take over the site and do what wasn’t intended by the architects, from many parts of the site still unbuilt or abandoned, they have started being reclaimed by the nature, only thing that keeps them alive are the people that frequently visit the spaces and the staff that take care of the surroundings.

The cul de sac, with its huge retaining walls looks like a well and is at the end if the passageway. It is the end of the site and it reflects the users walk to the end of the journey. The huge walls that are in fact vault type cemeteries, for burying family members. The space looks and feels like a vessel that holds the user, their feelings and the end of the journey altogether in itself. The cul de sac has no vegetation, it has some communal graves, that haven’t been used up till date. It has a sense of permanence along with the sense of being naked, open and bearing truth in itself. The architecture of the igualada, sees itself to be one of the best examples of religious architecture, “Rather than intervening on the drawing inspiration from the works of Le Corbusier land, here is a built work that now and attaching a sense of poetry and the dance with awaits intervention by its changing time, it achieves the sense of being immortal in natural environment.” the face of time, regardless of the many challenges the site has faced. The church and autopsy labs Zabalbeascoa, Anatxu: Igualada Cemetery: Enric Miralles and continued the faith of the cemetery and even Carmen Pinos, Phaidon Press, London, 1996. added more to the existing nature of the site, but they both remained to be incomplete or inadequate, and couldn’t stand the test of time. Enric miralles worked on Igualada’s extensions and other works till he died in the year 2000, he was buried in Igualada cemetery, again confirming his past present and future being linked to Igualada cemetery. 172

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The poetry of timefulness in Igualada cemetery

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Conclusion Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos, through the Igualada cemetery have invented and mastered a new form of funerary architecture, something which is very context driven, respects the beliefs of the users, respects the site and it’s features and complements it wholly. It is deserving of the recognition and accolades it receives today. It is true that the architects designed something that was ahead of its time, way before people were ready to accept it wholly, seen not in its partially constructed or even abandoned spaces and the many changes into the site layouts, after winning the competition, somehow shows a disconnect with the towns folk’s needs and visions regarding the project. The play of light emphasized in the project becomes a major chunk of what a user perceives in the site, something that gives it life, adding a drama and sense of playfulness in a site full of stationary and ‘dead’ elements. The site maintains and tries to extend this is all realms, from the individual catacombs where the border is meant to be irregular to create dynamic shadows throughout the day. The facades of walls to not seem blank, are made to be concrete jaalis, that let out selective light, adding more drama to the vistas.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The entire concept of the cemetery that is being one with the nature and letting it take over the site and the built forms was also one of the avant garde features of the design. With the existing cemetery in the town being one that was built in classical architectural style, this cemetery took a completely different approach, where the aesthetics weren’t just the only objectives to be followed. The result from this was a site that was ever growing and ever changing as time moved on. Enric Miralles, even after the construction of the first phase kept on working on the design, testing out theories, documenting how the nature was taking over the design and how many elements could’ve been changed or improved upon. This shows a person connection of the architect to the design, and how they both respect the dimension of time in their respective fields. With Enric Miralles finally buried in this cemetery, the circle has been said to be complete, where the creator has exchanged the creative power on to the nature completely, after the architect tried all his best to understand the needs and trends of nature. 173

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6.5. Islamic cemetery, Altach, Austria project info:

Text provided by the architect

Completion year: 2012 Architecture and landscape design: Bernardo Bader Architekten Site area: 8,500 sqm

“The design of a cemetery is based on the beliefs and their funeral rites, which in turn say a lot about the particular understanding of nature and social relations. As the real ‘Urgarten’ it is characterized by the cultivation of its soil and its clearly defined from surface. When creating a garden for the first time a piece of land is bounded and clearly delineated against the wilderness. The aim of the design is a very open and clearly laid out the overall concept. A delicate weave of wall panels in various heights frame the graves and the builtstructure. The ‘finger-like’ grave-scale fields allow implementation in stages, - the grave fields extend into the pristine landscape. The planned grave fields are bordered by low walls and form separate rooms. Divided into a compact area for organized grave burials and a small room with sitting-bench.”

Image and reference text sources: archdaily.com divisare.com bernadobader.com

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Inspired by the primordial garden and is delineated by roseate concrete walls in an alpine setting, and consists of five staggered, rectangular grave-site enclosures, and a structure housing assembly and prayer rooms. The principal materials used were exposed reinforced concrete for the walls and oak wood for the ornamentation of the entrance facade and the interior of the prayer space. The visitor is greeted by and must pass through the The muslim community of Altach, have long congregation space with its wooden lattice work wanted and deserved a place that would cater to their funeral requirements and have a congregation in geometric Islamic patterns. The space includes and prayer halls. The building does exactly that, in ablution rooms and assembly rooms in a subdued its completely pink concrete construction, it creates palette that give onto a courtyard. The prayer room a character for itself, standing out even with a very on the far side of the courtyard reprises the latticework theme with Kufic calligraphy in metal mesh small and simple form. on the qibla wall. The significant focal point of the building is its jalis, one at the entrance made of Glu lam boards that replicate traditional Islamic geometry seen in traditional mosques, allowing that pattern to be repeated and impression-ed in the walls, ceilings and floors of the building. The other jali finds itself in the prayer hall, is a steel mesh with glued wooden pieces spelling out Allah and other words relating to the Islamic faith. All Image showing the context map of the cemetery, these are meant to be very straight forward while showing the lush green farmlands and small town maintaining its symbolisms. settlements

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The Cemetery serves Vorarlberg, the industrialized westernmost state of Austria, where over eight percent of the population is Muslim. Located at the foothills by the main road Im Buch. The cemetery, a contrasting figure to the mountains in its background exists by itself, surrounded by farmlands and smaller settlements.

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Context and about the cemetery

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About the User The cemetery is isolated and is far away from settlements, although being closer to farmlands, it can cause underwater contamination in a long period of time, which can affect the crop production capacity of the soil. The cemetery provides for the need of its visitors by allowing the major activities like, congregation, preparation of the body, funeral and the praying hall. The place lacks any office or spaces for the cemetery staff, this is because the idea was to have the community to be brought close and have them contribute to the funeral services. Which justifies the ignorance of any office or other administration areas.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing the prayer hall of the cemetery with the steel mesh jaali and the wooden boards that spell out Islamic phrases.

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About the Zoning The zoning of the site, is made to be extremely simple and easy to navigate around the entire building. The parking area comes up first and from there the first and only building is accessible, for a person walking in they are able to see inside, and when at entering the first thing is the body preparation area and to the right are the congregation areas and further to that the prayer room, separated by courtyard. The three zones are placed in a linear and in serial layout, from there the congregational area perpendicularly the exit towards the graveyards.

The 5 graveyards are laid out efficiently one after the other, while facing the holy region of Mecca. The landscaping of the cemetery is made to be rustic and minimal, to complement and balance the simple geometric form of the building. Being a region of extreme cold, the trees remain leafless most parts of the year this makes the site look more lively and modern, and the minimal composition of every view makes it open for personalization for the graves on site, as they get to be the focal points for the user, and the building stays in the background. 177

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About the architecture

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

First burial place for Muslims in Vorarlberg and a winner project of Aga Khan Award for Architecture. A project known for its exemplary cultural dialog, analysis and research. The cemetery follows a subtle simple design and interacts with the surrounding nature providing a calm and dignified place for spiritual contemplation. The concept is open and is clearly laid out. Pragmatic, linear and with very little symbolism the project is simply blends into the landscape. The design follows the traditional religious belief and reveals the understanding nature and its social relations. Five Graveyards symbolizing the fingers of a hand. A system of concrete walls of varying heights in a restricted area. These walls create distinct spaces – oriented towards Mecca.

The visitor enters a partially roofed area spacious enough to accommodate a congregation and a crowd of mourners. This space further opens up onto the courtyard and is characterized by a lively play of light and shadow coming from an ornamental marquetry in a wall – bearing an octagonal motif in accordance with Islamic tradition. This subtle filter between in and outdoor and a small prayer space (mescid) are essentially for the identity and recognition of the place. Prayer room has prayer niche (mihrab) with a window facing towards Mecca. Metal-mesh curtains are situated in front of a whitewashed wooden wall and the window; gold-plated wooden shingles have been woven into the curtains to spell out the Arabic words Allah and Mohammed.

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Conclusion The Islamic cemetery follows a linear, pragmatic and uncomplicated concept. This is seen reflected in its planning, massing and the conceptualization of the space. The cemetery deeply rooted to its belief has a contemporary approach, to a traditional Islamic burial ground. Every architectural space should have a degree of personalization to it and the cemetery tries to achieve this by making a building that never overpowers it people, traditions and their sense of holiness. The play of light and shadow also enhances the blend between the indoors and outdoors, making the interior lively with its intensive and highly detailed use of jaalis. The jaali in the prayer room is made to reflect the same ideas, and also reflect the passing of time, as when an user comes to it for praying, he closes his eyes with certain position of light and shadow and during the prayer and at different times of the day, the shift of the sun, dramatically changes the mood and drama of the room. The sheer lack of any administration and office spaces are sort of taboo, but was masterfully justified as the entire cemetery is a community effort, the simplicity of the form reiterating the same, and allowing for a place that remains very calm, solemn and for its people, giving their final rest spaces as open courtyards/gardens.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The fact and the approach towards all these factors are the reason for its nomination and the eventual winning of the Aga Khan award.

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6 Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

6.6. Crematorium Siesegem, Aalst, Belgium project info:

Text provided by the architect

Completion year: 2018 Architecture and landscape design: KAAN Architecten Site area: 5,000 sqm

“Located in the countryside bordering the western ring road of the Belgian city, the crematorium, with its 74 x 74-meter footprint, merges with trees and shrubs that line the perimeter of the surrounding park, which was conceived by landscape architect Erik Dhont. Approaching the entrance at Blauwenbergstraat, a sense of calm pervades the site and upon arrival, visitors are subtly persuaded to slow down by the undulating gentle green mounds. To the north, a pond serves as a reservoir for rainwater, while small adjacent hills are dedicated to scattered ashes and to an urn garden. At the eastern end, there is a service road for the hearses that is entirely hidden from view so that families are not disturbed during the mourning ceremony, and so that privacy is respected.”

Image and reference text sources: dezeen.com archdaily.com KAAN architecten 180

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About the context Belgium and many other countries have now seen themselves move ahead of traditional burials and prefer cremations, that are much more cheaper, faster and leave a smaller carbon footprint. The act of burying the ashes is still there, which serves as a call back to the whole burial method, or an urn that people carry back home, to keep forever in remembrance. The site of the Belgian crematorium is humongous and completely dominates the surrounding context. Being surrounded b y area so commercial importance, the crematorium finds itself in a position that isn’t surrounded by its peers, but is surrounded by a building language of a different variety. To tackle this the building is positioned exactly at the center, almost constricting itself inside, away from the surrounding context. The asset of the main road and a service road covering the site maintains that a separate path can be used by its users and a completely special place can be utilized by the service and staff members.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing the surrounding context of the crematorium

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About the User Any user entering the crematorium is first welcomed to the large canopy, where a person can wait, talk and welcome other guests/family members visiting. Entering into the building the layout is made to be clear and simple and straightforward for the user who is here for the first time and would spend a shorter amount of time. All the spaces are made adequate to seat and engage larger and as well as smaller crowds. The spaces allow a person to look out and appreciate the oneness of the site and serve as the reminder of how their loved one has ow become one with nature, if they wish could be buried in the specially designed urn garden or burial areas. The people living nearby, are none as the area is completely commercial, the context isn’t very dense, allowing for better distribution of the released contaminants and the fear of any discomfort. For the workers of the crematorium, the spaces are made to be sufficient and they coexist with the main users of the space, assisting and organizing the funeral procession. The existence of separate routes for services and a complete well defined service block, makes it comfortable for the staff.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Image showing the concrete canopy that welcomes the user while entering the building.

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About the zoning The layout of the building is meant to be efficient and have the least amount of possible circulation. The two assembly halls are meant to be separate to give privacy to the two funerals going on, with service and office areas sandwiched in the middle. Both the assembly area then lead into the cremation area, from where they can head into

the canteen or the common disperse areas, where the as parts of the funeral process takes place, this is close to the entrance lobby making it easy or exit as well. The service lobbies include offices, storage, reception, kitchen and body preparation areas. The service block also has a mezzanine floor for the offices and the cremation machine operation. 183

When an user walks up to the crematorium from its entrance gates, its quite a walk and the building access path is massive, in the context to the mass building. The reason for this is to solidify the feeling of ‘light at the end of tunnel’ metaphor, where the destination is apparent and is the only one there. For anyone visiting the place, this is the destiny chosen for, their loved one and the only last chance for the user to bid farewell to the them. The building itself looks something close to a monolith, a large volume with glass on its side that give it a shimmer and a sense of being natural/ unearthed. When entering the building, the entrance canopy is almost hidden, the space is large and wharves anyone that visits it, allowing for the entire congregation of people to gather and collectively head in. The congregational halls are simple to find, and are clad on the inside with a kaleidoscopic stone wall, that although is plain, but has repeating patterns on it, making the walls and floors seem almost floating in a space that is devoid and completely different form its exteriors. In contrast, a large window looking out is provided where to the contact with its surroundings is always maintained. Every hall is also connected with smaller rooms with courtyards, that allow for breaks and smaller assembly areas.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

The cremation area, is not hidden but is the next step in the procession, where the user can see the chimneys, the massive yellow painted machinery, give solace to the deceased. This is give the users a sense of closure and help them move on. The ash attained can then be either taken home, scattered in the urn garden or buried in the backyard. The small bodies of water are for any one to walk and take a rest during a procession. The cafe/ eating area is made to be small, and allows for a small nourishing meal, to be respecting of the deceased and also to allow whatever time spent in the building to be in remembrance of their loved one. All the services areas are also effectively planned out, this is done quite efficiently, with allowing areas of storage, record keeping, receptions and kitchens. Services block are also provided a mezzanine, to separate from the lower areas that are mainly devoted to the funeral processions, where the office goers and the cremation operators don’t find comfortable spaces. 184

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About the Architecture

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Conclusion KAAN architects have in their attempt at the crematorium have successfully managed to create a formal and complete crematorium, something that values the newer tradition, allows in for the current technology, while making sure an efficient building surrounds it. The metaphors of life and death are kept simple and minimal, this was done to make the produce not just a poetic piece of architecture but also a functional one. From its sense of materials that instill calmness but have the textures of kaleidoscopes, reflects the duality of the building, allowing for a calm, solemn and reflective space but also to keep an office environment and allow for technological achievements to be displayed and encouraged for. The minimal landscaping, brings in nature, giving up control, while maintaining borders and allowing the user to appreciate the state of oneness that the landscaping instills in context of the site. For a person it can only be liberating to visit the space, with amenities that can provide for a fitting funeral procession, where family and friends discuss and look back in nostalgia.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Where the crematorium falls short is allowing for a larger space to look and feel the act of cremation, although its is mentioned how the architect wanted the process to be seen and felt, the execution regarding it looks unattained, as a sliver of the process is shown, which also seems like polished view. All in all the reason for a smaller building footprint and a relatively simple mass makes the building standout amongst its surroundings, from the outside it might even look deserted when theres no smoke coming out of the chimneys, but it is meant to be intensional and this allows for the space to be read in different ways, always opening itself to the experiential and personal views of the user.

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(left) Poster encouraging travel to Mathura (then called Muttra) from Indian state railways, 1910.

7.1

Site Study

Mathura, Uttar Pradesh

Graphic showing the religious demographic of Mathura district. source: Census 2011.

Site justification and context

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Taken from the conclusions from the earlier chapters, it becomes essential to adhere to the conclusions and the derivations of the same. A site had to be chosen, near the main city of Mathura. Since the state is rapidly expanding, an area on the outskirts of the military cantonment was chosen, this will ensure no other major development would take place around the site. The areas surrounding the sites are places of Industrial use, and a school and government office, The school area is massive, and the building is far removed from the area of the proposed crematorium. Also the main access of the school is different from that being shared from the school and the proposed site, thence separating them from each other. Around the site are also two recreational spaces. One being a horse riding area/school on the Western edge of the site and a small park further down the road on the east. They are also welcome additions for the site neighbours as they do not interfere with a crematorium and the design of the crematorium can be established in a way that can also be least interfering for the them.

A crematorium was deemed fit for the context for its large concentration of Hindu population and is considered place of pilgrimage for Hindus all over India. This might also include people who want their last rites to be carried on near the banks of Yamuna in the birthplace of Lord Krishna. IT can also adhere and deserve the need of cremation for the widows that live in Vrindavan and Mathura, who with an aid of the NGOs and Government institutions can attain a decent and deserving cremation after their death. The implementation of the sustainable and alternate fuel consuming crematoriums was implemented here for the ease of cremations for the widows, this will be cheaper for the women, if paying by themselves, or sponsored by another institutions (be it a NGO, government or an ashram). These forms of crematoriums will be crucial in also getting the word out to people, in making them aware of a newer form of cremation, and can be afforded by everyone, despite their economic stand. The place will also aim for a place of remembrance and as a place of attaining peace. An acceptance of grief and its needed passing will be provided for and then implemented for the same.

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(Top) Context map of Mathura showing the distance of the site from Mathura railway junction.

The context map shows how the site is sandwiched around the Mathura military cantonment area, which has government backed schools, universities, commercial areas, offices, recreational spaces and residential areas. The crematorium can expect most of its visitors from.

The neighborhood context shows how the site is surrounded by diary and poultry farms on the north and south east, followed by a green belt on its eastern side, facing the river. A horse riding area exists on its western side.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

(Bottom) Neighborhood map of the SITE, detailing the zoning of areas surrounding it.

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(Top) Climate study of Mathura and the selected site region

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

(Bottom) The micro-climatic analysis of the selected site

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Strengths

Opportunities

• • • • • •

• Use the greenery to make an introverted design that stays isolated from the surroundings. • Use the greenery as a method of natural healing. • People from the military cantonment will be the primary users.

An abundance of greenery on site. Surrounded by Industrial zones. Less residential areas around the site. Plenty open space in and around the site. Road access on the larger length of the site. River access on the eastern edge.

Weakness

Threats

• Kuccha road on north cannot be used as a permanent access point. • Contours on site can be a challenge for the users who will be carrying stretchers over their shoulders.

• Residential areas on North, as on alternative days of wind flows northward, which will take the smoke along with itself. • Variation in the different religions of the people from the military cantonment, cannot be supported through the crematorium complex.

(Bottom) Site plan showing the site dimensions, overall area and access on its west.

8M 6M 4M 2M

10M

12M

162.87

368.19

217

SITE

RIVER YAMUNA

.39

207 12M

.29

265 6M

81.77

117.21

33.57

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

SITE AREA : 38 ACRES

14M

175.53 12M

190

10M

Formulating the Design brief

While formulating a design brief and area program for the proposed crematorium, it was quintessential to provide for all the users studied before. That was to make the neighbors, least affected; the users feel complete when visiting a crematorium and the staff having spaces that are comfortable and inclusive. It also became imperative to give a mix between open and closed spaces letting them, coexist within each other. The larger site area will be easily able to accommodate this need, giving all its users a sense of contentment.

Area Program

Area (SQM)

Name

ENTRANCE

4 Wheeler parking (60) 2 Wheeler parking (35) Service parking Security Cabin Total

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

900

50 30

7 1

350 30 1330

Area (SQM)

Name Registration room Waiting area Administration Office Archival room Staff room + lockers OFFICE + RECEPTION Cold room Crematorium operation room Storage (wood) Kitchen & Canteen (staff) Health checkup area Toilets Living quarters for waorkers Total 191

Total Area (SQM)

Nos

Total Area (SQM)

Nos 15

300

50 735

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7.2

Electric/gaseous crematorium waiting halls

FUNERARY AREAS

Body preparation area Wood crematorium Sustaninable crematoium Ritual spaces Waiting area Storage Toilets Total

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

AMENTITIES

AREA PROGRAM

100

500

250

100

200

100

500

100 500 10 45

12 4 7 2

1200 2000 70 90 4860

Area (SQM)

Name Creche Reading space Prayer hall large Prayer hall small Green rooms Visitors canteen Kitchen Remembrance garden Burial area for scaterring of ashes Total

Total Area (SQM)

Nos

Total Area (SQM)

Nos 100 500

1 1

100 500

1000

500

10 1000 250

3 1 1

30 1000 250

1500

3000

3000 7880

Total Built area

8975

Circulation (15%)

1400

Total Built area Total open areas Total program area 192

10375 5830 16205

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Area (SQM)

Name

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7.3

Conclusion of the study The basis of this study for me started with the interest in explore the less explored, to try to find an answer as to why are some spaces ignored and forgotten? What are the values they contribute to the society? And is this trend any good? All these questions took me down a rabbit hole I couldn’t have seem to expect. The analysis has for me personally brought me to closer to the emotions of loss, grief and the feeling of anxiety. The idea death and how it affects so many people has to be experienced to be known. As an architect that has to keep in mind these emotions and the cultural togetherness, while designing a comprehensive functioning building is nothing short of a challenge and a massive undertaking.

other like minded enthusiasts to come forward and bring in a positive impact in their fields of interests and expertise.

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

It has been the very need of the times we are right now to bring in sustainability in our daily functioning lives, from th way we live, and eventually die. As the newer generation arrives, it cares more about the planet and the sensitive ecology that lived in it. It also understands the need for preservation, change and sustenance. All these practices become essential when proposing a newer form of a crematorium, for it to be a revolution. If the system works and the a newer form of cremation and crematorium is accepted, it shows how the people are ready to change, to understand tradition and history; and to be aware of the present and scientific criticism to being in a change. This path of an evolution is something that cannot be perfected or executed wholly at once, many many trials by many like minded individuals have to step together and come up that is acceptable and inclusive to everyone. Any amount of positive change brought into the world, tremendously turn back the clock of a global catastrophe. This thesis and design eventually is supposed to be an attempt at this very structure, and its success although not guaranteed, but should be looked at a place for

Apart from this, the research also sheds light on the people, that work and contribute in forgotten spaces like these. Tucked away, discriminated, forgotten and often mistreated, their needs and sufferings had to be made known. Caste system and poverty is one of the major reasons for their plight, and though the thesis cannot come up with a solution for either, it can however through its medium, showcase an example of a place, that cares and rehabilitates the existence of these men and women who willingly take charge to commit one of the deeds no other caste agrees to. As people they do not question nor discriminate who come to seek their help, as according to them and the Gods they believe in; every human deserves a cremation fulfilling of his/ her dignity. In completion of their karm in this world, to be rightfully allowed to let do of their worldly possessions and proceed on in search of the next step. The work of the workers is seen quintessential, as no one has the means and power to complete and dignified funeral for the deceased but them; and our gratitude towards them should be reflected in the building they work in.

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Youtube link to dissertation presentation video.

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Youtube link to design presentation video.

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Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

Bibliography • The future of working, Leadership and careers, Keith Miller • The environmental impact of activities after life: life cycle assessment of funerals By Elisabeth Keijzer • A death in the village means a tree is cut down, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Matrubhumi, May 22, 2019 • By using of agro waste to cremate bodies, this man has saved 35,000 trees, Nivedita Khandekar, VICE India, Octover 21, 2020 • Green alternatives to cremation, Tanvi Patel, Better India, January 3, 2018 • MOKSHDA cremation systems • Biodegradable Urns and Death’s Green Frontier, New York Times, April 22, 2016 • “Differences and Similarities of Green Burial in the United States and Europe” by Kate Queen, April 9, 2019 • Frankel, George. “What is an Eternal Reef?”. Eternal Reefs. Retrieved 3 April 2017. • “Resomation: Like Cremation, but Green”. ABC News. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2017. • Frankel, George. “What is an Eternal Reef?”. Eternal Reefs. Retrieved 3 April 2017. • “Resomation: Like Cremation, but Green”. ABC News. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2017. • Can You Afford to Die? Estimates of Expenditure on Rituals and Impact on Ecology, Archana Kaushik, Department of Social Work, University of Delhi. • “Not poor if you earn Rs.32 a day: Planning Commission”. India Today. 21 September 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2017.Chen and Ravallion, China is Poorer than we Thought, But No Less Successful in the Fight against Poverty Policy Research Working Paper 4621, The World Bank (2008), page 9 • Euromonitor International, National statistics. • Credit suisse.

• Death rites get the professional touch, Sandhya Sman, Time of India, November 6, 2014. • Meet Kolkata’s First Lady of Funerals, Arundhati Chaterjee, TweakIndia, September 29, 2019 • Death Inc, Prince Mathews Thomas, The Hindu - Business line March 02, 2015 • Checking into Mukti Bhavan — Varanasi, India’s Death Hotel, Khyati Mehta, October 2015. medium.com/ • Moksha Bhavan – The Hostel In Varanasi Where People Check-In To Die, Isha Jalan, Scoopwhoop.com, December 05, 2014 • India’s city where people come to die, Romita Saluja, BBC, June 18, 2019 • Hotel Death, Moni Basu, CNN, referenced October 15, 2020 • ‘Hotels of death’ in Indian holy city, SHowkat SHafi, Aljazeera, December 5, 2013. • Ajay Singh Rawat, Forest Management in Kumaon Himalaya: Struggle of the Marginalised People, Indus Publishing, 1999, • Ajay Singh Rawat, Man and Forests: The Khatta and Gujjar Settlements of Sub-Himalayan Tarai, Indus Publishing, 1993, • H.C. Upadhyay, Status of Scheduled Tribes in India, Anmol Publications Private Limited, 2004, • Prem Xalxo, Complementarity of Human Life and Other Life Forms in Nature: A Study of Human Obligations Toward the Environment with Particular Reference to the Oraon Indigenous Community of Chotanagpur, India, Editrice Pontificia Università Gregoriana, 2007, • The Indian Journal of Public Administration v.40, Indian Institute of Public Administration, 1994: • “The rise and rise of Veerappan”. The Hindustan Times. 2002. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012. • After water for petrol, Army gets ‘substandard’ wood”. The Tribune, Chandigarh. 1 August 2005 • Culture of Corruprion in India by Satishchander Yadav • Complementarity of Human Life and Other Life Forms in Nature, by Prem Xalxo • “Can You Afford to Die? Estimates of Expenditure on Rituals and Impact on Ecology” Archana Kaushik, Department of Social Work, University of Delhi. • What researching cremations of the dead in colonial India taught me about life in our cities today. Sohini Chattopadhyay, Columbia University, Aug 23, 2020

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(left) Sorrowing Old man ‘At eternity’s gate’ by Vincent Van Gogh, 1890. Known as his last painting before his demise.

• • • •

Dignity in Death: A crematorium design thesis

• • • • • •

•

• • • • • • • • • •

(1981). “The Evolution and Dynamics of Intraspecific Predation”. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics. “Embalming - Information About Embalming”. www. funeralhelper.org. 7 February 2017 trans. A. D. Godley 1920 “Kuru prions and sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease prions have equivalent transmission properties in transgenic and wild-type mice”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://gangapollution.weebly.com/death-rituals.html Babylon: Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization. Paul Kriwaczek. Ancient Mesopotamia. Leo Oppenheim. Ancient Mesopotamia: This History, Our History. University of Chicago. Mesopotamia 8000-2000 B.C. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 30,000 Years of Art. Editors at Phaidon. Fiaz Fazli, Crescent magazine, Srinagar, September 2009, p. 42. “Philosophy of Religion”. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Archived from the original on 21 July 2010. Retrieved 24 June 2010. C.J. Adams Classification of religions: Geographical. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2007 Archived 14 December 2007 Atzmon, G.; Hao, L.; Pe’er, I.; et al. (June 2010). “Abraham’s children in the genome era: major Jewish diaspora populations comprise distinct genetic clusters with shared Middle Eastern Ancestry”. Am. J. Hum. Genet. PMID 20560205. Archived 30 May 2016

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Israelite religion has its origins in Canaanite religions of the Bronze Age, it became distinct from other Canaanite religions in Iron Age I due to a focus on the monolatristic worship of Yahweh. Judaism likely became fully monotheistic in the 6th century BCE (Iron Age II). Archived 30 May 2016. “Abrahamic Religion”. Christianity: Details about... Christianity Guide. Archived from the original on 30 September 2008. Retrieved 19 September 2009. “Why ‘Abrahamic’?”. Lubar Institute for Religious Studies at U of Wisconsin. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2012. BBC.com, About christianity, an introduction. learnreligions.com, introduction to christianity. Zoroaster; BBC. The Genetic Legacy of Zoroastrianism in Iran and India: Insights into Population Structure, Gene Flow, and Selection; The American Journal of Human Genetics. The ancient Persian god that may be at the heart of ‘Game of Thrones’; The Washington Post. Mazda-Go 3-wheeled trucks (1931～); Mazda. The Last of the Zoroastrians. TIME. Zoroastrianism: Zorostudies.

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• The Silence of the Archives: Why the Grave Diggers of the Bubonic Plague are Unremembered, Sohini Chattopadhyay, Columbia University, May 14, 2020 • Do Mortuary Workers Come Last in the Covid19 fight?, Sohini Chattopadhyay, Columbia University, May 08, 2020 • A look into the daily activities of a cremation worker, during COVID-19, Pictures by Anupam Nath, AP, Al jazeera • National Commission for women • The Age of Kali: Indian travels and encounters by William Dalrymple • Ensure at least proper last rites to Vrindavan widows: Supreme Court, J. Venkatesan, The Hindu, August 04, 2012 • Mancini Enterprises • Matharoo and associates • DA Studios • Enric Miralles and Carme Pinos • Bernardo Bader Architekten • KAAN Architects • Uttar Pradesh and Mathura Board of planning • Google earth • Snazzy maps • Open street maps

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Utsav D1 ORIGINALITY REPORT

15%

SIMILARITY INDEX

INTERNET SOURCES

PUBLICATIONS

STUDENT PAPERS

MATCH ALL SOURCES (ONLY SELECTED SOURCE PRINTED)

sohinichattopadhyay.com Internet Source

Exclude bibliography

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199

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