Show hindu ceremonies cost billion yearly religious body wants huge expenses reduced london that the hindus in india spend something like annually on ceremonial occasions and that this national budget of the people needs economizing Is the main conclusion and recommendation made in a preliminary report by the hindu religious committee to his holiness the doctor A small committee was appointed ly by his holiness holl at the end of last year to report on the condition of religious observances in india and their effect on the economic condition of the people the following are the general conclusions drawn up by that committee in a preliminary report leaving out the moslems and the depressed classes for the moment vere are hindus in british india these are grouped into about families there are about deaths each year in these families every death means religious ceremonies leS lasting tor for 13 days which are performed by hindus of all ail castes it lias has been estimated that 50 rupees per death ceremony would be a very modest estimate thus rupees per ier year Is paid out by the hindus in what tile the committee calls death detles surrendered to the hindu go BO defy clety part of 0 this Is purely tor for cere trones tn ones similarly there are about births per year among the caste the ceremonies in connection with births are much less complicated as seemingly the passing ot of roan man from this life Is of 0 more importance than an arrival into the world and the committee calculates that the total average cost does not exceed 10 rupees per head including the ceremonies this would add 50 rupees to the bill during the lifetime of a caste hindu there are in all 18 16 ceremonies including birth and death in the case of the brahmans Brah mang mans numbering more than 35 there are two ceremonies the death and marriage ceremonies wilch which are the most Import important auL marriage la Is a ceremony of universal importance with bindus of all castes it has hag been estimated that there are 10 0 o all about hindu families ilk 1 india the number of marriages per year la Is estimated at about but taking into consideration that two families are concerned in the about families are affected by it at the lowest it la Is estimated each of these families spends about rupees on the marriage bringing the hindu national marriage bill up to the huge sum of OW rupees the thread ceremony among the brahmans Brah mans Is the most important as without it no person has the right to call himself a brahman about thread ceremonies take place every year costing about rupees there are numerous other ceremonies on all sorts of occasions like the new year the cassera das sera the festival of lights etc added together all these ceremonies represent an expenditure of rupees or 1050 the depressed classes numbering about have their annual ceremonial which costs them about 10 rupees per head adding another rupees of to the huge sum spent on ritual the committee considers that this Is an estimate for very lean years for the this estimate should average good year be increased by 50 per cent taking the present estimate a as s the best for the purpose of general consideration tile the committee thinks that at the present moment when the government dues are being considered as excessive an attempt should be mado made to reduce these religious charges the government of indias andias annual revenue Is round about the hindu spends more than 25 per cent on his religious rites and ceremonies alone if the income of an indian per head bead per year Is taken at the official figure of 25 then the hindu Is spending more than 23 25 per cent of his income on religious ceremonies after gov eminent and other taxes have been paid the hindu has to live on about 15 cents per week the committee considers that a broader and more humane outlook must be taken of this problem of 0 life for the hindu they feel that the question must be considered as ai a whole and that heads of the hindu religion should be consulted throughout india and that religious ceremonies should be reduced in costs so as to make it possible to undertake religious ceremonies without having to borrow from a money lender to do so |