A woman believed dead woke up in her hearse moments before she was about to be cremated.
Days earlier, Bujji Aamma, 52, from Berhampur, India, had been severely burned in a fire at his home on February 1.
She was taken to MKCG Medical College and Hospital for treatment, with burns covering half of her body. She returned to her house, but was left in very bad condition.
Due to the family’s poor financial situation, they could not take her to another hospital for further treatment and a few days later, on Monday, she did not open her eyes.
Aamma’s husband, Sibaram Palo, believing she had died, arranged for her to be taken to the cremation ground in a hearse.
Due to the family’s poor finances, locals donated money to help pay for the cremation ceremony (File Image)
He said Indian Times: “We thought she was dead and informed others in the locality to prepare a hearse to take the body to the cremation ground.”
A woman, K Chiranjibi, who accompanied Aamma in the hearse said they had almost finished setting up the funeral pyre when she opened her eyes.
Chiranjibi said: “At first we were scared because we had never seen such an incident, although we had heard some stories.”
The hearse driver, Khetrabashi Sahu, who originally picked up Aamma’s “body” from her home at 9am, was called to pick her up, alive and breathing, from the cremation ground just half an hour later.
They took her home in the same hearse.
According to the crematorium, locals do not need to submit a death certificate to perform the last rites of a family member.
The last rites are very important in Indian culture and are closely linked to the natural environment.
When the person dies, the body is placed on a grass mat or on the ground. This symbolizes the death that occurs within the arms of the earth.
A special water is poured into the mouth of the deceased, candles are lit and a bowl of rice is placed near the body.
Then the body must be taken to the crematorium with the eyes covered.
Fortunately, Bujji Aamma’s family evidently overlooked this detail, allowing them to watch her open them.
This is not the first time someone has woken up from the “dead” in India.
Last year in October, a newborn baby was believed to have been stillborn.
The incident occurred in Silchar city.
The father, Ratan Das, 29, received the news at the private hospital just after his wife gave birth.
A death certificate was issued and only when they arrived at the crematorium did the newborn begin to cry.