|
There
are many differing burial traditions around the world.
Here is a quick review of what people look for and what
is done concerning burials. A
2004 poll for the National Funeral Directors Association
found 62 percent of U.S. adults want personalization at
their funerals. The most popular forms cited in the
survey included friends relating stories (50 percent),
playing favorite music (47 percent) and displaying
photos and personal items (42 percent).
Common
misperceptions: one cannot have a funeral and then be
cremated; their religion does not allow cremation (for
example the Catholic Church has allowed cremation since
1965). Some Fundamentalist Christian, Orthodox, and
Islamic faiths do not allow cremation.
In other parts of the world, space and ecological
considerations have made changes to our normally
accepted practices for burial and cremation of remains.
A cemetery in Victoria state in Australia has begun an
innovative way to bury the dead in an environmental
friendly and inexpensive way; an alternative to
cremation. This is “standing room only” for those
who choose to be buried in this unique cemetery.
The deceased are placed in biodegradable body bags
instead of the normal caskets, and buried vertically on
land that is used for animal grazing. According to the
cemetery company the concept is to return to the earth
with a minimum of fess and with nothing that would
affect the environment. Once the land has stabilized,
animals, both domestic and wild would be allowed to
graze on it.
In Singapore land is so scarce burial space is recycled
so the remains of the dead may be cremated and moved to
create more room for the living. The remains of some
18,000 people at the only cemetery open for burial are
being exhumed.
The remains are cremated, placed in cremation urns, and
placed in niches in a vault or columbarium. In 2006
another 18,000 remains will be exhumed and cremated.
The law in Singapore limits the burial period for the
deceased to fifteen years; the result of an
environmental program that authorities say will keep the
cemetery open for at least sixty more years.
In Korea Cremation as an alternative to direct burial
has increased to almost fifty percent. According to the
JoongAng Daily an old law in Korea regarding funerals
was changed in 2001, establishing a 60 year limit for
burial, after which the remains are to be exhumed and
cremated. Many remains are now being scattered, and
usage of cremation urns is increasing.
Since that time, due to the scarcity of land, and the
high costs of burial in Korea, cremation has increased
to 47 percent in 2004. Burials average 7000 USD in
Korea, while cremation is about a third of that.
With 60 percent of the deaths in Seoul being cremated,
there is a scarcity of crematoriums to perform
cremations. This has literally resulted in crematoriums
turning people away, and it is not unusual to see lines
of family members waiting before daylight for the
crematorium to open.
When a location for a new crematorium is found in Seoul,
the local residents protest, saying pollution and a drop
in property values will result-the “NIMBY”
statement. There are cases now being taken to the Korean
Supreme Court by angered residents.
Cremation In Tibet “Sky Burial”, the traditional
burial in Tibet, has been done for several thousand
years. According to the Tibetan Academy of Social
Sciences, 80 per cent of Tibetans have traditionally
chosen this method of burial but cremation is slowly
becoming more accepted.
Sky burial is one of the three principal ways through
which the Tibetans traditionally return their dead to
the earth. The two others are cremation and water
burial.
Though the central government built a modern crematory
in Tibet on Oct 17, 2000, very few Tibetans choose
cremation. The first Tibetan cremation was carried out
on Jan 2, 2001.
Cremation is not currently popular among Tibetans due to
thousands of years of tradition. Wood is so scarce in
the mountainous areas of Tibet that in the past burning
a corpse was reserved for people of stature.
Sky Burial involves an ancient ritual done by special
Tibetans, called sky burial operators. There are about
1100 sky burial sites and about 100 of the special sky
burial operators. Traditionally, the deceased are
specially dissected and left at the sky burial site for
vultures, which are worshiped by the locals as sacred.
Sky burial is closely related with Buddhism worshipped
in the Himalayan region. Buddhists believe life recycles
and advocate kindness and charity. The spirit of the
dead is believed to leave the body the moment he dies
and the dead should be fed to hungry vultures as a last
token of charity.
The largest sky burial site at Drigung Til Monastery
receives about 10 bodies on an average every day. The
rituals carried out at the 900-year-old monastery are
regarded auspicious. The 65-year-old Celha Qoisang
formally chief sky burial operator at Drigung Til
Monastery stated:” I used to get totally exhausted
every day, but I am willing to live like this because
sky burial is an important part in Tibetan life”.
He learned the techniques from his uncle and was engaged
in the profession for about 10 years. He usually dealt
with one to 20 bodies a day. "I could only rest for
one day every month, the 19th day each month in the
Tibetan calendar. And I usually spent the day reading
sutras and praying for the dead.”
According to a Tibetan Buddhist sutra, the divine in
heaven get together on the 19th day every month and the
mundane are not allowed to kill or let the divine smell
blood.
The unique rituals are accepted by the central and
regional governments. The regional government bans
uninvited outsiders from participating in the rituals
and photography is forbidden. These measures are for
showing traditional respect to the rituals and the dead.
”Tibetans may choose cremation, but sky burial is
still widespread in Tibet”, said Cedain Lhunzhub, head
of the Xishan Crematory in Tibet. A young Tibetan in his
20s, stated: "In fact, burials are not that
important after human beings' death, and we Tibetans
prefer sky burial because it contains Tibetans'
compassion and belief. I would certainly choose sky
burial after my death, though I am not a Buddhist
believer,"
Although cremation is slowly making inroads, the
Tibetans still carry on ancient rituals like sky
burials, displaying a timeless adherence to the old ways
of life and death, unaffected by the changes that are
rapidly affecting the rest of China. It is unknown how
the Chinese view cremation among the Tibetans.
We may not be ready in Western culture to do some of the
environmentally friendly things mentioned above as an
alternative to burial and cremation, but some people in
Sweden have come up with a high-tech alternative.
An Environmentally Friendly Alternative to Cremation-A
New Swedish Cryogenic Technique
Promessa Organic AB, a Swedish company, located in
Jonkoping, a town of 120,000, lies in a religious area
of protestant Sweden.
Promessa has developed a technique they call “Promession”.
Promessa expects their ecological process will be used
to largely replace cremation in Sweden and many parts of
Europe. The technique was conceived by a Swedish
biologist, Susanne Wiigh-Masak.
“Nature's original plan was that we fall down
somewhere in a field and become soil.”
"Since then we have made it really
complicated." Susanne Wiigh-Maesak
Simply, Promession is a cryogenic technique where the
deceased is not embalmed but is flash frozen to minus 64
Fahrenheit by conventional refrigeration, and then super
cooled to minus 385 Fahrenheit by dipping in liquid
nitrogen. This is very similar to “freeze drying”,
used in many commercial applications.
The frozen, brittle remains are then lightly vibrated at
a closely controlled frequency and amplitude,
transforming them into an odorless, hygienic organic
powder, which is then introduced into a vacuum chamber
where the water; of which seventy percent of the human
body is composed, is evaporated away.
The dry powder is then processed to remove any metal
parts or residue (including mercury, more below), and it
can be sterilized and disinfected.
The Promessa plan reduces human remains to about 40-70
pounds of an organic powder. It should be noted that
conventional cremation reduces the remains to a fine
ash, weighting much less.
Promessa’s plan includes placing the powder in a
starch coffin, which is buried in a very shallow grave.
The starch coffin degrades in six to twelve months
allowing the powdered remains to be absorbed by the
soil. A tree, plant or shrub may be planted on the
grave, their roots absorbing the nutrients from the
remains.
Promessa claims their environmental process does not
cause any impact on the environment, and should
eliminate restrictions.
This should make it possible to locate gravesites freely
in places where it is not currently legal or practicable
to do so; on ones property, or family property, or other
places with emotional ties to the deceased and family.
It will also make it possible for family and friends to
visit gravesites at their convenience.
Churches in Sweden have backed the plan, describing the
issues as ethically similar to those addressed when
approving cremation about 100 years.
The ashes remaining from conventional cremation are
often scattered by families per the deceased’s wishes.
Scattering of cremation ashes from human remains are
often bound by state and local regulations.
Many European countries consider mercury as a highly
toxic heavy metal that has been linked to damage to the
brain and nervous system, and are actively legislating
to eliminate mercury and other heavy metal emissions
into the atmosphere.
The previously mentioned city in southern Sweden,
Jonkiping, will convert its crematorium into a
“promatorium” next year. The city’s decision to do
this was driven by new strict environmental laws,
restricting or eliminating mercury and other toxic
emissions resulting from the cremation of dental amalgam
fillings.
The alternative was to add an expensive gas scrubbing
system and furnace at its fifty year old cremation
facility.
In England, the Department for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs (Defra) has advised all cremation
authorities and companies in the UK they have until the
end of 2005 to consider their options for a fifty
percent reduction in the emissions of mercury by 2012.
It is estimated that crematoriums release up to sixteen
percent of the UK's total mercury emissions. As
cremations account for about 70 per cent of the 650,000
funerals in Britain every year, the negative
environmental effect of mercury emissions from
cremations has become a cause for concern.
Officials in some of the local community’s (councils)
environmental health departments have stated: "More
and more people are dying with their own teeth, and
mercury emissions released in cremations are set to
increase by sixty five per cent by 2020 unless action is
taken.”
Several Councils are looking to install special
equipment in their local crematoriums to absorb the
mercury emissions resulting from the cremating of
mercury amalgam dental fillings.
One council has established a task group to investigate
the long-term benefits of Promession with a view to
phasing out cremations as early as 2007.
Other countries, including New Zealand are carefully
studying the Promessa’s process as an alternative to
cremation.
NASA Is Considering Promessa’s suggested cryogenic
method to be able to return the remains of deceased
astronauts on board their interstellar spacecraft.
Danish engineers commissioned by NASA for project
“Body Back” have studied various methods for
handling deceased astronauts in space. In their report
to NASA they suggest Promession as the best method
available to return Astronauts remains from extended
space travel.
Cremation
of Ones Remains is Not an Appealing Topic, But it’s an
Important One, Both Financially And From a Family
Standpoint. A Little Knowledge Will go a Long Way to
Help You And Your Family Members to Understand What
Everyone’s Preferences Are.
Today, about a quarter of all deaths in the United
States are followed by cremation. A new national survey
indicates forty six percent of Americans plan to choose
cremation, up fifteen percent from 1990. In some states,
the choice of cremation is rising very rapidly.
About thirty percent of those choosing cremation state
that they do it to save money; fourteen percent because
it is simpler, less emotional, and more convenient;
about the same percentage state that they want to save
land. One benefit is that one’s remains may be
scattered in a place or places that have special
meaning, the ocean, mountains, or a memorial garden,
among others.
A little over half of the respondents choosing cremation
in the survey stated that they would most likely
purchase a cremation urn.
· About forty percent would chose scattering of the
remains.
· About twenty five percent would place the remains in
a cemetery (sixteen percent to bury), (eight percent to
a columbarium), (and one percent to a church
columbarium).
· Ten percent stated that they would take the inurned
remains home.
· Fourteen percent were undecided.
With cremation, an expensive casket is not necessary. A
simple wood or even cardboard will serve quite well it
will be quickly reduced to ashes anyway. Some states
allow for no cremation casket at all.
Almost ninety percent of all who choose cremation say
they would like some kind of a ceremony. A casket can
often be rented if a funeral service is desired prior to
cremation, and the remains stored in a Cremation Urn
(our business here at Signature Cremation Urns), or a
service may be held with the Cremation Urn containing
the remains.
The author, DA Roth builds and markets unique hand
crafted hardwood cremation urns for human and pet
remains. He is interested in sharing knowledge about
cremation and cremation urns with others. Please see:
http://www.signatureurns.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=DA_Roth
Cremation and urns are parts of Burial and funerals, as
much as grave stones and memorials.Urns and cremation
are parts of Burial and funerals, as much as grave
stones and memorials. Cremation and urns are parts of
Burial and funerals, as much as grave stones and
memorials.Urns and cremation are parts of Burial and
funerals, as much as grave stones and memorials.
Cremation and urns are parts of Burial and funerals, as
much as grave stones and memorials.Urns and cremation
are parts of Burial and funerals, as much as grave
stones and memorials.
|
