Sammendrag
The majority of Hindu cremations in India are still performed with open pyres. These cremations are fluid open air public events organized and controlled by local communities. Such traditional events are full of cosmological, eschatological and soteriological significance. The purpose of these open cremation events are to purify and free the soul from the body of the deceased in order to secure a rebirth in another realm, render the soul a safe journey to heaven or to turn the soul into a benign ancestor instead of a haunting ghost. In contrast, Norwegian cremations are modern and secular pragmatic phenomena concerned with clean, environmental friendly and dignified disposal of the body, industrial, secluded from public view, minutely regulated by various laws and professional standardisation and offer limited access for relatives. In Norway open cremations pyres are illegal. All cremations must be performed in crematoria certified by the government, maintained and controlled by the municipality and the Church of Norway. Due to globalisation and conflicts in South Asia during the last couple of decades there are approximately 12000 Hindu immigrants in Norway. How do Hindu immigrants in Norway compromise and adapt their cremation events in order to comply with the Norwegian regulations and limitations?
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