This shall also pass away

Recently (to be specific last Sunday), the father of one of ex-colleagues died. He died of cancer. The instant I heard the same, it was horrible. Memories came back of the time spent together. Though his (my friend) exit from my present company has been almost 6 months, all the images of togetherness, parties, get-togethers, meetings, duels which I had with him came across my eyes vividly. The tone which he spoke was different. A sudden sense of pity rose inside me.
I was there at their home before the funeral rites. There was a sudden gloom as the dead body was being carried away. The dead man's kith and kin could help themselves from not crying while the corpse was being lifted away from their house to the grounds. There was wailing all around; streams of tears from the eyes of all near and dear ones; smokey milieu cortsey the burning of sacred dust as per rituals; commotion with all friends and known ones around.
The funeral went off as per rituals. That was the first for me. Everybody paid their last wishes. I was there for quiet some time even after the ritual lighting of the pyre. The atmosphere had changed a bit. There was grief but that was with a tinge of maturity; all realising that this was to happen today or tomorrow. There was a sense of fellow-ness and feeling for the other person. Me thinks the Hindu rituals are the reason for this. It is a lengthy one encompassing variuos steps and procedures which reduces the sorrow slowly but steadily; one does not realise when it has reached zero.
With the hustle and bustle of the times and the complexities in the respective jobs, we easily are able to do away with the sorrow attached with the death of a known one. Herman Hesse comes straight to one's mind; straight from Siddhartha - This shall also pass away. Who knows when my time also comes....