Rituals: Food

In addition to religious objects, food plays an important part in Hindu rituals. On the lower two shelves, different products are stocked separately. The idea behind storing food separate from each other, is that they should not mix and, instead, “maintain their purity”. On the left, rice and sugar are stored separately in plastic bags, which are, for example, used during the festival of Diwali.

On the right, an aluminum can of ghee is visible (also see figure 1). Ghee is clarified butter and is traditionally made from the milk of a grass-fed cow, because this animal is considered sacred in Hinduism. The ghee can be used in fire rituals, but also to make persad, a sweet Indo-Surinamese dish which is used in an offering. “Because Dutch people do not know it”, the owner states, “I call it a host” (in Dutch: hostie) – which is the bread used in the Christian ritual of the Eucharist. While she is carrying out her rituals, she notes that “this is how we learned it in our household.”