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Such, then, is the mode in which the kings are buried: as for the
people, when any one dies, his nearest of kin lay him upon a waggon
and take him round to all his friends in succession: each receives them
in turn and entertains them with a banquet, whereat the dead man is
served with a portion of all that is set before the others; this is
done for forty days, at the end of which time the burial takes place.
After the burial, those engaged in it have to purify themselves,
which they do in the following way. First they well soap and wash
their heads; then, in order to cleanse their bodies, they act as
follows: they make a booth by fixing in the ground three sticks
inclined towards one another, and stretching around them woollen
felts, which they arrange so as to fit as close as possible: inside
the booth a dish is placed upon the ground, into which they put a
number of red-hot stones, and then add some hemp-seed.
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