Bihar boy Amit was floated on Ganga as kin thought he died of snakebite after 13 years In hindu mythology, a child dying of snakebite is not cremated.
Instead, the corpse is tied to a raft made of banana stems and floated on the river Ganga with the hope that the child might return someday.
While many would think it to be insane, Naresh Paswan and his wife Asha Devi did just that when their eight- year old son Amit was presumed dead after he was bitten by a snake.
Years passed and the Paswan family had come to accept their fate till this Monday, when a young man knocked at their door.
Dressed in a saffron robe, the 21-year-old claimed to be their 'dead' son Amit. He had returned home after 13 years.
The incident took place at Koylikhutha village under the Lodipur police station of Bhagalpur district in Bihar.
Naresh, a mechanic by profession, at first thought that the young man was playing a cruel joke by reminding him of his 'dead' son.
But he soon realised that the youth was serious.
A bewildered Naresh immediately called his wife, his eldest son
Sanjay and other villagers to ascertain the identity of the man.
"In the beginning we were all perplexed. But my brother recognised many people in the village," Sanjay said.
"He also remembered some of the incidents from his childhood. But the clinching evidence came from my mother." Asha took a look behind one of Amit's ears and, much to her joy, found that he had the same birthmark as that of her 'dead' son.
"If there was still any doubt about his identity, it was removed when we found the cut mark on the forefinger of his left hand," Sanjay said.
Apparently, Amit's finger was cut when the family tried to remove the poison from his body after he was bitten by the snake.
"My younger brother was bitten by a poisonous snake. He did not see the reptile and thought it was a mouse," Sanjay said.
"He was given an injection. But his condition had started to worsen as the poison spread across the body." Fearing the worst, the family members rushed to the place where Amit was bitten and found a poisonous snake there.
They cut his finger with a blade and rushed the unconscious boy to a local doctor, who pronounced him dead.
"In our custom, children dying of snakebites are not cremated. So my father tied his body to a bier made of banana stems and floated it on the Ganges," Sanjay said.
Following his return to the village, Amit recounted that his body was retrieved by some holy men somewhere in West Bengal.
"They probably realised that there was life left in me, so they took me to their ashram ," Amit said.
"I subsequently remained in coma for a while. It was the holy men who gave me a new life." But he could not return home immediately. The sadhus told him that following their customs, Amit could return to his native place only after spending 12 years in their company.
"They told me that after 12 years I will have the option to choose either the life of an ascetic or return to my family," Amit said.
"They also told me that if my parents fail to recognise me, I would have to seek alms from them and return to the sect and remain a holy man for the rest of my life." A MIT said he was taken to Ujjain three years later by the sect members and he stayed with them there. He accompanied them to different parts of the country and went as far as Nepal, singing hymns and playing instruments.
When the 12-year rider came to an end, Amit left for his village along with a member of his sect, Anil Singh.
He would have returned with Singh had his parents not recognised him.
Much to the joy of the family members, Amit has decided to stay with them for now.
"We are all so happy to get back Amit," his mother said. Naresh said it had happened only because of God's blessings.
Sanjay, who is preparing for his competitive examinations, said some rituals would have to be performed at a temple in Ujjain before Amit can fully embrace family life.
"My brother has expressed a desire to wear jeans and T-shirt. We are going to the market to buy some new dresses for him," Sanjay said.
Sanjay said that he had seen such things happen only in movies. Today he has realised that truth can be stranger than fiction.
