Sir Arthur's funeral will be held on Saturday, March 22 at 3.30 pm Sri Lanka time at General Cemetery in Colombo. Sir Arthur had left instructions on how he would like his funeral to be held.
Sir Arthur's body now lies at Leslie's House (colombo 07), with friends and fans lining up to pay their last respects.
Regards,
Thilina Heenatigala
General Secretary
Sri Lanka Astronomical Association
* * * * * Text of Sir Arthur's letter with funeral instructions* * * * *
In almost 90 years of living, I have twice enjoyed reading my obituary in print – and their subsequent reaction and apology! But I am aware that one of these days, the news of my death will no longer be premature.
This letter captures my wish for funeral arrangements.
· My funeral should be held in Sri Lanka, as soon as possible following my demise and the medical/legal formalities are completed.
· I have pledged to donate the cornea of my eyes to the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society, who should be informed within two hours of death to perform their task.
· My body may be kept only for a minimum necessary period at Leslie’s House, 25, Barnes Place, Colombo. This has been my home since 1972 – and where I have buried several of my beloved canine friends.
· The entire funeral should be a private event, allowing the opportunity for my friends, family and fans to pay last respects. It should be on a very low key, and as inexpensive as possible. Please do not put up structures or decorations of any kind.
· Absolutely no religious rites of any kind, relating to any religious faith, should be associated with my funeral, which should be entirely secular.
· I am to be buried at the family burial plot owned by my adopted family, the Ekanayakes, at the Kanatte General Cemetery in Colombo.
· Under no circumstances should there be any official involvement on the part of British or Sri Lankan governments. I am placing my long-standing business partner Hector Ekanayake and my office manager Rohan de Silva exclusively in charge of all arrangements. They have looked after me very well for decades, and I know they will respect my last wishes.
signed/
Arthur C Clarke
Colombo, 8 August 2007
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
1 comments:
Hi Thilina Heenatigala,
Since you are a resident of Colombo and obviously a fan of Arthur C. Clarke you probably will visit his grave in the future. If so, my question is whether you would kindly send me your photo of Sir Arthur's grave.
I am operating a non-commercial website on biographies and graves of famous people from around the world (www.knerger.de)
My eMail:
klaus.nerger@googlemail.com
with best regards
Klaus Nerger (Mr)
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