Burial History           

While in Brazil it is custom to bury children with their eyes open, other cultures and religions have different practices when it comes to burial. Some of them are very common, while others seem unnecessary to people of our culture. Strange as they may be, all of the customs mean something to the people that believe in them.

In Buddhism, the dead are prepared for burial through meditation. Buddhist do not view death as the end of a life, merely a rebirth into another one. Once the body is washed and ready for burial, certain rituals are performed by loved ones over the body corresponding to their beliefs. Once all of the rituals are complete, the body is cremated and the spirit is reborn again.

Hindu burials are done to properly ensure that the person will be reincarnated. The family of the deceased performs the rituals and celebrates the rebirth of the person into a new life. The Hindu religion does not mourn for their dead, they rejoice for the reincarnated spirit.

A picture of the "Death Angel" statue. Taken from a graveyard in Jackson Michigan. (Photo courtsy of Annie's Eternity site. To go there, click here.

The Islamic religion is very precise when it come to the rituals perform for their dead. The body is washed and prepared to enter the afterlife. After prayers are said, a reading is done from the Qur'an. After this is complete, they position the body on the right side facing Mecca for burial.

Judaism is perhaps the simplest of all ceremonies. A prayer service is held to remember the dead, and then the body is washed and wrapped in linen. After all of this is complete,  a funeral banquet is held.

Another very popular tradition in the Christian religion is a wake. A wake is watch kept over a dead body, usually during the night preceding burial. Ancient peoples in various parts of the world observed the custom. As an ancient ritual, it was rooted in a concern that no person should be buried alive. After it was adopted by Christians and as it is practiced today, the wake serves the primary purpose of allowing friends and relatives of the deceased an opportunity to adjust collectively to the changed conditions. Typically there are traditional songs and laments. Prayers for the deceased and eating and drinking by the assembled mourners are features of the wake. Wakes may vary from part of one night to three nights in length.

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More pictures of Salgado's work

photo from An Uncertain Grace