Remains of man who attained 'samadhi' re-buried; relatives claim it 'maha samadhi'

Thiruvananthapuram: The mortal remains of a 69-year-old man, whose body had been exhumed and subjected to a post-mortem examination after authorities raised suspicions over his family's claims that he had attained 'samadhi', were reburied at the premises of his residence near Neyyattinkara here on Friday.

The mortal remains were brought to the site in a religious procession and reinterred in a large square pit, in a cross-legged sitting position, amidst chants of 'Om Namo Namah Shivaya'.

His family and the organisers of the burial described the ceremony as 'Maha Samadhi'.

The remains of Gopan Swami were brought from the mortuary to the family home in an open top vehicle decked with flowers with the body in a cross-legged sitting position and completely wrapped in a red cloth.

His relatives and supporters showered flowers on the remains during the religious procession.

A big square pit was prepared and named 'rishi peetham' (where a yogi sits) and the remains were buried in it in a cross-legged position by covering it completely with 'vibhuti' (sacred ash).

During the entire 'maha samadhi' ritual, local religious leaders and 'sanyasis' chanted 'Om Namo... Namah Shivaya' while a large crowd gathered there to witness it.

Gopan Swami's remains were exhumed amidst tight security on Thursday and its post-mortem was conducted as part of an investigation into his mysterious death.

After the post-mortem conducted at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, the body was handed over to the family by noon on the same day.

According to the initial post-mortem findings, the cause of death appears to be natural, the police had said.

The initial attempt at exhuming the body was halted earlier this week following protests from family members and residents.

Subsequently, the family approached the Kerala High Court to stop the exhumation, but it declined to interfere.

The incident had come to light after posters near the man's residence proclaimed, "Gopan Swami has attained samadhi." The police registered a missing case and initiated the exhumation following complaints from residents alleging foul play.

Gopan Swami's son, Rajasenan, claimed that his father walked to the burial site around 11.30 pm last Friday and entered samadhi.

He told the media that his father had instructed the family to keep his body away from public view and bury it at the designated site.

The burial site was specially prepared by Gopan Swami, a priest who had also established a temple on his property at Kavuvilakam in Neyyattinkara.