Concepts of grief and dying are different between cultures/religions.

Identify one culture and answer the following questions.

 1.     What region of the world is this culture/religion predominantly practiced?

 2.     What are the origins of this culture/religion?

 3.     What are three things you find most interesting about the culture/religion's death and dying practice?

 4.     Compare and Contrast your own beliefs on death and dying to that of the culture/religion you chose to learn about.

 5.     How does what you learned about another culture/religion influence your nursing practice going forward?"

It’s time to take a look into one more culture – the Hindu – to find out what they think of the death and dying process. Here's a detailed look into the questions:

 1. Which part of the globe is this culture/religion most common?

 Hinduism is mainly followed in India and Nepal but is also followed in some extent in other countries due to migration of people from India, such as in United States of America, Canada, United Kingdom, etc.

 2. Where did this culture/religion come from?

 Hinduism has been the tradition of India as far as 1500 BCE. The root of modern Hinduism was established as a Vedic faith by the Indo-Aryans, and the Hinduism developed in phases in the course of different historical and cultural era such as the Upanishadic phase as well as the emergence of various schools of Hinduism.

 3. I like to ask three things that interest a person regarding the culture/religion chosen and their death and dying practice.

 Reincarnation and Karma: Like many Eastern religions, Hindus also hold the doctrine of rebirth; the soul is reborn in a ‘new’ body. The quality of the new life depends on karma that is done in the previous life. This tends to influence their understanding of death not as finality but as a change of phase.

 Rituals and Ceremonies: Concerning the Hinduism death rites plays major roles. Burial of the dead is not common and the cadaver is usually burnt on a pile of wood so that the soul can be liberated. The last rites are conducted by eldest son or any other family member and it is a way of leading a soul to the other world in a safe manner.

 Mourning Period: This mourning period ranges from 10 to 13 days and one can include the following activities; certain foods are shunned, the bereaved cannot attend any eventing, and a few rituals are performed to help the departed soul.

 4. Do you agree with the culture/religion that you have studied regarding the ideas on death and dying and/or how does your perspective coincide with them?

 Personal Beliefs (Hypothetical Example): If you were brought up on more or less secular Western style of thinking you might tend to see death as cessation of life than as transitory process and thus might prefer memorialism over rebirth symbolism. You may also not think of bereavement as something you have to do mechanically or in accordance with traditional rites.

 Comparison:

 Similarities: Contrarily, both views acknowledge the roles of mourn and grief as well as the requirement to pay respect to the deceased.

 Differences: Concerning Hinduism, reincarnation and karma beliefs are inconsideration of the fact that secular perspectives do not have considerations of afterlife or reincarnation. Thus, it seems that the Hindu approach to death and dying is conceptually more developed and concrete than the secular one, which may be tending more toward the idiosyncratic.

 5. In what ways do you think the knowledge about another culture/ religion to be helpful to you while practicing nursing in the future?

 Understanding Hindu death and dying practices will influence your nursing practice in several ways:Understanding Hindu death and dying practices will influence your nursing practice in several ways:

 Cultural Sensitivity: You will be better prepared to respond to cultural needs of Hindu patients and families and their customs.

 Patient and Family Support: Failing to respect what is sacred and meaningful such as reincarnation and certain rituals may lead to a lack of adequate support through comforting words and perhaps actions such as obliging to the rituals or allowing family involvement in the healthcare of the patient.

 Education and Communication: Understanding these cultural practices can be instrumental in explaining to the patients and or their families the identified care plans and any issues that a given culture or religion may present.

 Applying an understanding of culture into carrying out nursing practices is very paramount since it will allow the provision of appropriate and culturally sensitive care to patients and their families.