Hafta for Rights: Exploring Hindu Women's Performance of Last Rites in India

Rituals of death are subtle and critical aspects of a civilisation. However, the experience of these rituals may be dependent on an individual’s intersectionality resulting in varied access to cultural artefacts, practices, rituals and myths. The conduction of last rites is one such ritual as it preferentially appoints males as appropriate conductors. The present study explored the experiences of Hindu women who conducted or wanted to conduct last rites for their elders with a background of Feminist Standpoint Theory to explore a situated understanding of last rites. Twelve participants were interviewed and the data was analysed through thematic analysis within an interpretive phenomenological paradigm. Five themes were identified: role criteria, last rites, individual, interpersonal and sociocultural. Investigation of these led to an understanding of how various gender-based rules and regulations dictate the woman’s right to rights, the role of last rites as a feature of the grieving process, multiple acts of subversion by familial stakeholders despite hegemonic realities and how diverse intersectional factors transform one’s experiences. Limitations of the study and further areas of investigation have also been highlighted.