Extraordinary Indians - S.Sreedhar

[Guest guest]

Anil chandrot

 

 

 

The manager who does funerals for abandoned bodies

 

 

 

 

 

'She had children of her own, but her pyre was lit by Sreedhar, a stranger' What is there in life if you cannot forgive your father and mother?'

 

 

 

 

S Sreedhar collects unknown, unclaimed bodies from hospitals and old age homes and performs their last rites. He has been doing this for the past 24 years.

 

A lazy Sunday morning, when the majority of people relax with a cup of hot coffee and a newspaper, S Sreedhar is at the mortuary at the general hospital in Chennai. The hospital authorities hand over 17 bodies wrapped in a white cloth to him. No, they are not his relatives. In fact, all those 17 people are strangers to him -- unclaimed bodies with no one to give them a last farewell.

Sreedhar takes all these unknown bodies to the cemetery, and gives them a decent burial after showering them with rice, flowers and milk with a prayer on his lips. They are buried because the names or religion of the dead are unknown. If the deceased are Hindu and from an old age home, he gives them a proper cremation according to Hindu rites.

Back home, Sreedhar, associate vice-president, IndiaInfoline, does not feel bad that his weekly holiday starts in a burial ground. On the contrary, he feels calm and blissful, having bidden farewell with dignity to some unknown souls. Sreedhar started this service of cremating the unknown 24 years ago in 1985 after he happened to read the book Daivathin Kural (God's voice) by Chandrasekharendra Saraswati, the Paramacharya or senior shankaracharya of the Kanchi Mutt. "In the book, he says that a dead man should be given a decent farewell irrespective of the caste or religion the person belongs to. When the atma (soul)) leaves the body, it should be given a proper farewell. This is the belief of all Hindus."

The observation made Sreedhar think of all those unknown and unclaimed bodies in the hospitals and the abandoned old people in old age homes. And when he expressed his desire to cremate the abandoned bodies to the Paramacharya, he blessed Sreedhar and asked him to go ahead.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Sai Ram Saiansh,

 

Thanks for the mail and if any one interested to contact Mr.Sreedhar, then here is his contact details

 

May Sai Bless him always

www.dharmaa.org sreedhar.1955 Phone : 0 98407 44400

 

Warm regards

Anil

On Tue, Dec 1, 2009 at 4:11 PM, SAIansh <mylovingbaba wrote:

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is extremely a great task that Shri S. Sreedhar has been doing for the last 24 years. In fact, it is for the first time that I have been hearing such activity being performed by somebody.

My sincere wihes to Shri S. Sreedhar for carrying out this noble deed.

 

Baba bless him again and again.

 

Saiansh

 

 

 

Anil <anilchandrotMon, 30 November, 2009 11:56:17 PM

Extraordinary Indians - S.Sreedhar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The manager who does funerals for abandoned bodies

'She had children of her own, but her pyre was lit by Sreedhar, a stranger' What is there in life if you cannot forgive your father and mother?'

 

 

 

 

S Sreedhar collects unknown, unclaimed bodies from hospitals and old age homes and performs their last rites. He has been doing this for the past 24 years. 

 

A lazy Sunday morning, when the majority of people relax with a cup of hot coffee and a newspaper, S Sreedhar is at the mortuary at the general hospital in Chennai. The hospital authorities hand over 17 bodies wrapped in a white cloth to him. No, they are not his relatives. In fact, all those 17 people are strangers to him -- unclaimed bodies with no one to give them a last farewell.

Sreedhar takes all these unknown bodies to the cemetery, and gives them a decent burial after showering them with rice, flowers and milk with a prayer on his lips. They are buried because the names or religion of the dead are unknown. If the deceased are Hindu and from an old age home, he gives them a proper cremation according to Hindu rites.

Back home, Sreedhar, associate vice-president, IndiaInfoline, does not feel bad that his weekly holiday starts in a burial ground. On the contrary, he feels calm and blissful, having bidden farewell with dignity to some unknown souls. Sreedhar started this service of cremating the unknown 24 years ago in 1985 after he happened to read the book Daivathin Kural (God's voice) by Chandrasekharendra Saraswati, the Paramacharya or senior shankaracharya of the Kanchi Mutt. " In the book, he says that a dead man should be given a decent farewell irrespective of the caste or religion the person belongs to. When the atma (soul)) leaves the body, it should be given a proper farewell. This is the belief of all Hindus. "

The observation made Sreedhar think of all those unknown and unclaimed bodies in the hospitals and the abandoned old people in old age homes. And when he expressed his desire to cremate the abandoned bodies to the Paramacharya, he blessed Sreedhar and asked him to go ahead.

-- " O Shirdi Sai Nath, Give me the guidance to know when to hold on and when to let go and the Grace to make right decision with dignity " " The Future Belongs To Those Who Believe In The Beauty Of Their Dreams "

Om Sai Ram~Anil - chandrot (AT) gmail (DOT) com~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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-- " O Shirdi Sai Nath, Give me the guidance to know when to hold on and when to let go and the Grace to make right decision with dignity "

" The Future Belongs To Those Who Believe In The Beauty Of Their Dreams " Om Sai Ram~ anil - chandrot ~