Introducing 'Thanatology' into India's education ecosystem
This subject aims to investigate the mechanisms and forensic aspects of death, such as bodily changes that accompany death and the postmortem period, as well as wider psychological and social aspects related to death.
In recent years, India has started to incorporate many new subjects in their vast ecosystem of vocational and informational studies. Many of these changes and inclusion have come, post the enrollment of NEP (New Education Policy). However, there remains a plethora of unexplored courses that students are yet to be made aware of; one such subject is “Thanatology” which simply put is the science of death and is the scientific study of its peripheral arenas. This subject aims to investigate the mechanisms and forensic aspects of death, such as bodily changes that accompany death and the postmortem period, as well as wider psychological and social aspects related to death. Thanatology as a subject has been a prevalent course in many western countries and was first introduced by Swiss medical scholar, Elisabeth Kubler Ross around late the 1950s. She was a major critic of how hospitals treated terminally ill patients; owing to which she began giving a series of lectures featuring such patients and encouraged medical students to comfort them with empathy.
As of this date, no educational institution in India has included the subject of Thanatology, neither in their primary or secondary set of courses; not even in optional courses. It perhaps has much to do with the taboo associated with the subject matter of death. However, there seems to be an uncanny paradox here since India has some of the world's best forensic science curricula and is also the land where rituals pertaining to death have been pretty elaborate, regardless of the cultural or religious context. As an emotionally driven country, it is surprising to observe that a subject that tends to focus on raw emotions such as grief and sorrow has never been uttered about. As suggested by India’s demography, youth is the future hence, it is about time that the new generation is exposed to such practices and studies; if not from a conventional perspective but at least to be sensitized and made well informed.
However, much ground-level work must be done to lay down a proper foundation for a particular subject. From gathering teachers to the development of a standard curriculum, efforts at the grass-root level are required. Little steps such as conducting workshops with an audience of teachers and students can be a place to start and then introducing Thanatology as an optional course. It is crucial to monitor the pace and intensity of inclusion given how sensitive the subject matter is; identifying the age group of students to be introduced to this subject. Developmentally, children process death and grief differently at different ages. A five-year-old cannot comprehend concepts of a soul or afterlife and believes the dead person will come back. A seven-year-old might begin to understand that death is permanent and can develop an extreme fear of death and other adults dying. Introducing this subject after students finish their secondary education and have a better understanding of life’s cycle, will be perhaps the best entry point for this subject.
President cases of formal training in grief and bereavement management have earlier come in the form of psychosocial support programs which focused on addressing loss during humanitarian crises. The National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) in collaboration with the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) developed training for psychosocial care in disaster management during covid. Similarly, the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) has special training programs for caregivers working with people living with HIV/AIDS. An entry point to inculcate Thanatology can be through palliative care programs imparted via civil society organizations that can provide these services as part of targeted interventions.
However, the approach has to be holistic and broader to serve the purpose and bring about a paradigm shift in the way people are convinced of the ideas of death, loss, grief, and sorrow. ‘Death literacy’ has to be propagated via Thanatology as a subject or at least a topic that is integrated into the education system. India’s educational institutions have earlier dealt with sensitive yet socially imperative topics such as Sex Education. Even though it is a work in progress, the sheer inclusion of it and steps by NGOs/NPOs along with social activists have penetrated the early-stage barriers. Educational institutions must come forward and take initiative to speak openly about this subject and actively integrate it into the curriculum. It will be
a new learning experience for the students and in the era of hyper-globalization, it is only right to give Indian students access to subjects and disciplines which are extensively taught abroad such as Thanatology.
Authored by - Rishabh Jalan, CEO & Co-Founder, Last Journey Funeral Services
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of India TV)