Harrison's
ashes to be immersed in Ganges
NEW DELHI, India --The ashes of the late Beatle George Harrison
are to be immersed in the sacred Ganges River, according
to a spokesman for the Hare Krishna movement. http://edition.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/Music/12/03/harrison.india/index.html
Maha Mantra Das, a New Delhi spokesman for International
Society for Krishna Consciousness, told wire services that
Harrison's widow, Olivia, and his son, Dhani, 23, would
be accompanied by two Hare Krishna devotees who performed
Hindu rites on Harrison's ashes with the family in London,
England. Harrison was a devotee of the Hindu faith.
Olivia and Dhani Harrison
were headed for the holy city of Varanasi to carry out the
rites, according to Reuters. The Associated Press reported
that the ashes also would be sprinkled at Allahabad, where
Hinduism's three holiest rivers -- the Ganges, Yamuna and
Saraswati -- converge.
The timing of the ceremony
was unclear for the guitarist known by many as the "quiet
Beatle," who died Thursday in Los Angeles, California,
at age 58 after battling cancer. Britain's Press Association
reported that Harrison's family was to scatter his ashes
in India to coincide with a requested worldwide minute of
meditation, which would take place 9:30 p.m. in London,
or 3 a.m. Tuesday (2130 Greenwich Mean Time) in India.
Das said that this
was likely.
"Early morning
is a very auspicious time for Hindus," he said.
Das said the family
wanted to make the ceremony "very private."
Long tradition for
Hindus
In a tradition dating more than 3,500 years, Hindus are
cremated on riversides and their ashes immersed in holy
waters. Hindus believe this ritual releases the soul from
the body for its heavenward journey and frees it from the
cycle of reincarnation.
Thousands throng the
banks of the Ganges River, considered the holiest by Hindus,
for cremation ceremonies each day.
Harrison was cremated
in a cardboard coffin hours after his death in keeping with
his Eastern faith.
Das said Hare Krishna
members had been praying "for the soul" of the
musician who believed in reincarnation and was a faithful
member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness,
popularly known as the Hare Krishna movement.
'He looked so peaceful'
In 1966, Harrison came to India to study the sitar with
Ravi Shankar. Shankar, whom Harrison helped make famous
during the Beatles' visits to India, was present during
Harrison's final hours in California.
"We spent the
day before with him, and even then he looked so peaceful,
surrounded by love," Shankar said in a statement Friday.
"George has left so many precious memories and moments
in all our lives which will remain with us forever."
In 1967, Harrison introduced
the other Beatles to the teaching of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi,
who pioneered Transcendental Meditation. Harrison and fellow
Beatle John Lennon traveled to Rishikesh, a holy city in
northern India on the Ganges, to study meditation under
the Maharishi.
Harrison was the only
one who remained a follower, and he visited India many times.
The Hindustan Times reported Monday that he quietly visited
Varanasi three months ago to bathe in the Ganges and pray
at local Hindu temples. He used a false name, and no one
was aware of his visit until he left, the paper reported.
Harrison was also a
devotee of India's Hare Krishna sect. In one of Harrison's
most popular songs, "My Sweet Lord," the musician
himself chants Hare Krishna.