Nepal; cremation on the Baghmati river, 1986

Nepal; cremation on the sacred Baghmati river at Pashupatinath, 1986. As N0022577C. A body, covered in saffron-coloured cloth, is laid out on a ghat ready for cremation while a mourning woman offers a prayer for her departed kin. Hindus believe that a ritual cremation helps the soul leave the body. The practice of suttee, immolation of widows on their husbands' funeral pyres, was abolished by Prime Minister Jung Bahadur Rana (the first of the oligarchical 'Rana' dynasty) following a visit to England and France in 1850.