Once upon a time, not so long ago, I received an email containing a file
with pictures of the sacred Tibetan burial ritual, the Celestial
Burial.
Celestial burial refers to the Tibetan tradition of feeding the dead to vultures and other birds of prey on mountaintops. The body is first ripped open, mutilated, and then squashed with a large hammer to ‘soften’ – I forgot the exact term for this – the bones, before it was finally devoured by vultures.
It is closely related to the Buddhist practice in the Himalayan region. Buddhists believe in the recycling of life. The dead person's spirit is believed to leave the body upon death. His body is fed to the birds of prey as a final token of charity. (Xinhua News Agency January 12, 2006)
(SFX: ‘The Circle of Life’ - Elton John)
Some people may see this ritual as savage. Brutal. Primitive. Mean. Inexplicable. Someone told me that, even though he thinks the value/thought behind the ritual is good, the act’s still unacceptable.
I wonder.. Is it?
Actually, the ritual of giving the dead to the vultures doesn’t exclusively belong to the Tibetans only. The Parsi people, an ethnic group who came from the western part of India, has a similar ritual too. If for the Tibetans it's about the recycling of life and charity -for the Parsis, it's also about charity and keeping the sacred element (earth, water, fire, & air) unpolluted.
Parsi people depend on vultures to take them to heaven. They leave the deceased's body in open air, to be eaten by the birds. The religious belief behind this practice belongs to Zoroastrianism. The Zoroastrian religion itself is one of the most ancient monotheistic faiths and it probably influenced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Its prophet, Zarathustra, was born in what's now Iran, sometimes between 1500-600 BCE. Like Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammed, he came to his turning point when he turned 30. So he went to take a sojourn in the desert and meditated on the meaning of life. He returned at 40 and talked of One God, Ahura Mazda, the omniscient Lord of Wisdom who has no form, shape, beginning, or end. Ahura Mazda has 7 helpers called Amesha Spentas. These archangels of creation guard and protect humans, animals, plants, and the sacred elements: earth, water, fire, & air.
Zoroastrians believe that the sacred elements must not be polluted by human waste. In the rocky Iranian desert, the faithful were left on mountaintops to be devoured and dried by the sun's ray. In India, Parsi Zoroastrians leave out their dead for vultures -believing it's the cleanest, most hygienic way of getting rid of the soul's temporary home. And just like the Tibetans, they also think it's the ultimate charity.
Buddhism is about peace/non-violence, humility, and compassion. A (true) faithful of the belief wouldn't even kill a mosquito, let alone eat animals. They live a humble live, accepting that life is full of sufferings and is ultimately unsatisfying. The way to be happy is to want less. While we modern materialistic people, more often than not, always want more and more in life.
We are never satisfied, always asking God to give us more of this, more of that, more of everything. We kill each other in violent wars with our modern weapons. And then we boast and brag of our 'victory' when we ‘won’, even though that so-called-victory floats above rivers of blood. We’re also killing our Mother Earth and all that was created for us inside it. And many of us only show compassion when other people are around to see it so we can get praises and good remarks.
And yet we think we're more superior, more civilized, and more righteous, just because they (other cultures) practiced an ancient burial ritual?
Oh, the irony of it all!
True, it's downright gory and horrifying, but I don't think it's unacceptable. Like cremation or burial, it's just a ritual. And a holy and sacred one that is, at least for the Tibetans. I myself will certainly not opt it as a burial option but I respect they who do so. They have a right to do so. I respect their belief. Anyway when you're dead, it doesn't really matter, cos you can't feel a thing anymore, right?
And really, who are we to judge what is right or wrong, what is civilized or uncivilized, what is acceptable or unacceptable? Some people used to think that circumcision is just a useless and mean ancient religious ritual -until science finally proved that it’s actually beneficial. We used to think that the earth was the centre of the universe, before we found out that it's not, the sun is.
In this mad mad world, I guess nothing is ever what it seems.
P.S.: Don't take it personally – no pun intended. I'm not preaching, it's just my personal opinion. Not from a Buddhist's point of view as I'm not a true Buddhist by heart. And for sure I'm no saint and not a religious person at all! I'm just (trying to be) a realistic and rational person =)
Cheers!
Celestial burial refers to the Tibetan tradition of feeding the dead to vultures and other birds of prey on mountaintops. The body is first ripped open, mutilated, and then squashed with a large hammer to ‘soften’ – I forgot the exact term for this – the bones, before it was finally devoured by vultures.
It is closely related to the Buddhist practice in the Himalayan region. Buddhists believe in the recycling of life. The dead person's spirit is believed to leave the body upon death. His body is fed to the birds of prey as a final token of charity. (Xinhua News Agency January 12, 2006)
(SFX: ‘The Circle of Life’ - Elton John)
Some people may see this ritual as savage. Brutal. Primitive. Mean. Inexplicable. Someone told me that, even though he thinks the value/thought behind the ritual is good, the act’s still unacceptable.
I wonder.. Is it?
Actually, the ritual of giving the dead to the vultures doesn’t exclusively belong to the Tibetans only. The Parsi people, an ethnic group who came from the western part of India, has a similar ritual too. If for the Tibetans it's about the recycling of life and charity -for the Parsis, it's also about charity and keeping the sacred element (earth, water, fire, & air) unpolluted.
Parsi people depend on vultures to take them to heaven. They leave the deceased's body in open air, to be eaten by the birds. The religious belief behind this practice belongs to Zoroastrianism. The Zoroastrian religion itself is one of the most ancient monotheistic faiths and it probably influenced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Its prophet, Zarathustra, was born in what's now Iran, sometimes between 1500-600 BCE. Like Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammed, he came to his turning point when he turned 30. So he went to take a sojourn in the desert and meditated on the meaning of life. He returned at 40 and talked of One God, Ahura Mazda, the omniscient Lord of Wisdom who has no form, shape, beginning, or end. Ahura Mazda has 7 helpers called Amesha Spentas. These archangels of creation guard and protect humans, animals, plants, and the sacred elements: earth, water, fire, & air.
Zoroastrians believe that the sacred elements must not be polluted by human waste. In the rocky Iranian desert, the faithful were left on mountaintops to be devoured and dried by the sun's ray. In India, Parsi Zoroastrians leave out their dead for vultures -believing it's the cleanest, most hygienic way of getting rid of the soul's temporary home. And just like the Tibetans, they also think it's the ultimate charity.
Buddhism is about peace/non-violence, humility, and compassion. A (true) faithful of the belief wouldn't even kill a mosquito, let alone eat animals. They live a humble live, accepting that life is full of sufferings and is ultimately unsatisfying. The way to be happy is to want less. While we modern materialistic people, more often than not, always want more and more in life.
We are never satisfied, always asking God to give us more of this, more of that, more of everything. We kill each other in violent wars with our modern weapons. And then we boast and brag of our 'victory' when we ‘won’, even though that so-called-victory floats above rivers of blood. We’re also killing our Mother Earth and all that was created for us inside it. And many of us only show compassion when other people are around to see it so we can get praises and good remarks.
And yet we think we're more superior, more civilized, and more righteous, just because they (other cultures) practiced an ancient burial ritual?
Oh, the irony of it all!
True, it's downright gory and horrifying, but I don't think it's unacceptable. Like cremation or burial, it's just a ritual. And a holy and sacred one that is, at least for the Tibetans. I myself will certainly not opt it as a burial option but I respect they who do so. They have a right to do so. I respect their belief. Anyway when you're dead, it doesn't really matter, cos you can't feel a thing anymore, right?
And really, who are we to judge what is right or wrong, what is civilized or uncivilized, what is acceptable or unacceptable? Some people used to think that circumcision is just a useless and mean ancient religious ritual -until science finally proved that it’s actually beneficial. We used to think that the earth was the centre of the universe, before we found out that it's not, the sun is.
In this mad mad world, I guess nothing is ever what it seems.
P.S.: Don't take it personally – no pun intended. I'm not preaching, it's just my personal opinion. Not from a Buddhist's point of view as I'm not a true Buddhist by heart. And for sure I'm no saint and not a religious person at all! I'm just (trying to be) a realistic and rational person =)
Cheers!
(added note: a comment reply from a friend)
Hey, great topic.
To say that the Tibetan burial ritual is "unacceptable." your friend is missing the entire point.
First, as you succinctly titled your piece, it is a "Circle of Life." If we break it down to simple terms, it is a matter of recyclability.
Take the example of Christian burial rituals. The deceased is enclosed in a casket/coffin which in some cases are hard to decompose materials.
The question then becomes how important is it for your beloved dead ones to remain well preserved when it is buried 6 feet underground? You have plans to invite it to next Thanksgiving dinner maybe?
And when we take into account the economics of real estate, it doesn't really make any sense to expense a large area of land to house dead people. Notice the contradiction in "to house dead people?"
In this case coffin burial is unacceptable since it disrupts nature's Life Cycle. Pollution is a type of disruption and look how it has damaged our planet.
Second, however macabre Celestial Burial maybe, as you already pointed out, these are corpses that are being chopped to pieces with the permission and blessings of the deceased family. No harm is done. No lives were taken. In fact it's quite the opposite, by feeding the vultures this practice actually sustain Life.
Finally, when we, as a human race, have collectively mutilated just about every living creatures on this planet, it is pompous arrogance to think that our lifeless self should be treated above others.
-
*** Don't mess with us Buddhist Monks. we got Karma watching our backs ***
Posted by: Zui | May 27, 2007 05:06 PM
To say that the Tibetan burial ritual is "unacceptable." your friend is missing the entire point.
First, as you succinctly titled your piece, it is a "Circle of Life." If we break it down to simple terms, it is a matter of recyclability.
Take the example of Christian burial rituals. The deceased is enclosed in a casket/coffin which in some cases are hard to decompose materials.
The question then becomes how important is it for your beloved dead ones to remain well preserved when it is buried 6 feet underground? You have plans to invite it to next Thanksgiving dinner maybe?
And when we take into account the economics of real estate, it doesn't really make any sense to expense a large area of land to house dead people. Notice the contradiction in "to house dead people?"
In this case coffin burial is unacceptable since it disrupts nature's Life Cycle. Pollution is a type of disruption and look how it has damaged our planet.
Second, however macabre Celestial Burial maybe, as you already pointed out, these are corpses that are being chopped to pieces with the permission and blessings of the deceased family. No harm is done. No lives were taken. In fact it's quite the opposite, by feeding the vultures this practice actually sustain Life.
Finally, when we, as a human race, have collectively mutilated just about every living creatures on this planet, it is pompous arrogance to think that our lifeless self should be treated above others.
-
*** Don't mess with us Buddhist Monks. we got Karma watching our backs ***
Posted by: Zui | May 27, 2007 05:06 PM
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