Author Topic: Sky burial, the Tibetan way (Read 3877 times)

islander · « **on:** May 07, 2013, 04:09:50 PM »

Sky burial is a funerary practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is incised in certain locations and placed on a mountaintop, exposing it to the elements (mahabhuta) and animals â€“ especially predatory birds. The locations of preparation and sky burial are understood in the Vajrayana traditions as charnel grounds. In Tibet the practice is known as jhator, which means "giving alms to the birds." (wikipedia)

Sky burial site, Yerpa Valley

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islander · « **Reply #1 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:11:52 PM »

The majority of Tibetans adhere to Buddhism, which teaches rebirth. There is no need to preserve the body, as it is now an empty vessel. Birds may eat it, or nature may cause it to decompose. Thus, the function of the sky burial is simply to dispose of the remains. In much of Tibet, the ground is too hard and rocky to dig a grave, and, due to the scarcity of fuel and timber, sky burials are often more practical than cremation. High lamas and some other dignitaries may receive burials so as to honor them in death, but sky burials were standard practice for commoners. (wikipedia)

Drigung Monastery, Tibetan monastery famous for performing sky burials.

note: opted to edit out other images; too graphic for comfort. for the curious, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_burial

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islander · « **Reply #2 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:20:46 PM »

TIBETAN FUNERALS AND DEATH

Tibetans believe that the cessation of breathing is only the first stage of death. Afterwards, they believe, the soul separates out of the various â€œsubtle elements.â€ First, the earth elements dissolve into the water elements. As this happens the dead loses his sense of sight and feels like he is shriveling up. As the water elements dissolve into the air element the dead loses his hearing and feels surrounded by smoke. After the soul separates from the body, various levels of consciousness disappear and the deceased emerges into translucent light. This is when Tibetans believe that true death has occurred.

A sky burial site

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islander · « **Reply #3 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:25:51 PM »

Death is viewed as a transformation not an end. Tibetan are encouraged to witness death and the disposal of bodies so they do not fear death or are in awe of it. This is one reason why ritual objects are often made from human bones. After death, the body is kept in a sitting position for 24 hours while a lama recites passages from The Tibetan Book of the Dead to help guide the dead to the afterlife. Three days after death the deceased is blessed with morning prayers and taken to a monastery for the funeral.

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islander · « **Reply #4 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:27:57 PM »

Tibetans believe that individuals' souls remain in bar do, a special zone for the newly dead, for 49 days after death, during which time they enter a new body (that of a human, a hell being, a god, or an animal) to start a new cycle of life, death and rebirth. On each of the 49 days the deceased passes through a new level.

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islander · « **Reply #5 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:28:40 PM »

After true death has occurred the dead begins his journey towards rebirth and this may involve communion with gods, demons, hungry ghosts or a trip to hell. All this occurs with the understanding that post-death experiences are not real, but projections of consciousness that causes birth, death and rebirth.

http://factsanddetails.com/

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islander · « **Reply #6 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:38:27 PM »

"Sky burialsâ€ are the most common way of disposing of dead bodies in Tibet. The body of the deceased is carried to a monastery on the backs of close friends and cut into little pieces by monks or members of a professional caste, and the pieces are fed to vultures who carry the spirit skyward to heaven. Family members of the deceased are often nearby but not actually at the site of the burial.

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islander · « **Reply #7 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:39:21 PM »

When a body arrives the hair is cut off, the body is cut into pieces and the bones are pulverized and mixed with tsampa for the vultures to eat. Before stripping the flesh off the bones the monk who does the deed usually sharpens his knife on the sides or a rock, walks around a monument and says a prayer.

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islander · « **Reply #8 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:40:04 PM »

In Lhasa sky burials are performed at dawn at special burial grounds, near a temple, that have been used for such burials for centuries. The rituals are closed to outsiders. In remote areas of Tibet the burials can sometimes be observed by outsiders. Participants of funerals regard ogling tourists as invasions of their privacy. Taking photographs is considered to be horrible manners.

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islander · « **Reply #9 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:41:12 PM »

Communists officials banned sky burials in the 1960s and 70s. As part of tolerance for Tibetan customs and religious practices, sky burials were allowed again in the 1980s. The vice governor of Tibet told the New York Times in 1999, "We encourage cremation but we allow sky burial. Itâ€™s a Tibetan custom...Tibetans feel very strongly about sky burial. A few years ago, a Chinese soldier shot a vulture and was stoned by Tibetans. It was understandable. if vultures are fair game, who is going to do sky burial."

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islander · « **Reply #10 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:42:19 PM »

Sky burial are usually performed in places where wood is scarce and the climate is cold. Tibetans canâ€™t bury their dead because the ground is often frozen, nor can they burn them because there is little wood. The bones are collected and taken home and scattered. For important lamas the bones are mixed with mud and made into a chorten.

http://factsanddetails.com/

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islander · « **Reply #11 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:43:14 PM »

Crushing the bones

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islander · « **Reply #12 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:43:46 PM »

Adding flour

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islander · « **Reply #13 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:44:24 PM »

Collecting all the pieces

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taga tigbao · « **Reply #14 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:44:52 PM »

Crushing the bones

Mao na lagi ni ahong giingon!

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islander · « **Reply #15 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:45:16 PM »

Vultures arrive

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islander · « **Reply #16 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:47:43 PM »

Vultures fight over pieces

note: one image edited out because the poster can't stand it; if you can, here's the link: http://factsanddetails.com/china.php?itemid=210catid=6subcatid=35

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islander · « **Reply #17 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:49:07 PM »

Mao na lagi ni ahong giingon!

nangambisyon ko nga makaadto ug tibet kay fan ko ni dalai lama, pero di gyod ko motan-aw ani, bahala.

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islander · « **Reply #18 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:51:28 PM »

Participants of funerals regard ogling tourists as invasions of their privacy. Taking photographs is considered to be horrible manners.

salamat.

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islander · « **Reply #19 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:53:51 PM »

Description of a Sky Burial

Describing a sky burial held around noon near a Buddhist temple in the remote town of Lirong, in a Tibetan area in Sichuan, Seth Faison wrote in the New York Times, "The body of a 67-year-old woman was stiff after three days of transport from her home more than 200 miles away... Lobsang, the monk who performed this sky burial, tied a burlap bag around his waist like an apron. Working methodically, with the dispatch of a professional, he stripped the flesh from each of the woman's limbs." [Source: Seth Faison, New York Times, July 6, 1999]

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taga tigbao · « **Reply #20 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:54:10 PM »

nangambisyon ko nga makaadto ug tibet kay fan ko ni dalai lama, pero di gyod ko motan-aw ani, bahala.

Hahahahaha. Maski ko. Mulibot na ag ahong kuto kuto maghuna huna. Didto koy nakit-an nga picture nga kamot gikaon sa vulture unja ang tudlo na lamay nabilin. The rest nabukog na.

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islander · « **Reply #21 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:56:38 PM »

salamat nga wa ko mohatag sa link. manobra unya ang akong curiosity, na. naa gyoy maghusa karong gabii.

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islander · « **Reply #22 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:57:17 PM »

"He took one bone after another, placing them on a flat stone. Raising a small sledgehammer over his head, he smashed them into small pieces...so small they could be devoured by vultures...separating the yield into two small piles, flesh and bone...next to last came her skull, which burst into pieces with a sharp crack, when the hammer came down."

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islander · « **Reply #23 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:57:51 PM »

When Lobsang finished cutting the body, he looked up at the vultures on the hillside. He signaled them, with a flick of the wrist, that it was feeding time. On cue the birds descended in a mass of flapping wings and pecking beaks, devouring the remains in minutes...No trace of the woman's body remained...The vultures, about of 50 of them, ambled slowly up the hill and took to the air with evident difficulty, overfed as they are from the daily ritual."

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islander · « **Reply #24 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:58:50 PM »

Lobsang told the New York Times he disposed of 10 to 15 bodies a week and was paid about $5 for each one. "I come here every day, and its about the same. Some bodies smell worse. Some are bigger, heavier. No big deal."

http://factsanddetails.com/

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islander · « **Reply #25 on:** May 07, 2013, 04:59:43 PM »

cool, lobsang, cool.

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taga tigbao · « **Reply #26 on:** May 07, 2013, 05:04:32 PM »

Hahahahaha. Colcolon unja nas Lobsang ron. Wa bay alho ug lusong dihas Tibet aron lubkon na lamang?

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