References

1. Burial at Sea. (2001). Newport Landing Burial at Sea Service. Retrieved from http://www.newportlanding.com/bas.html

2. Burial at Sea Services. (2014). New England Burials at Sea. Retrieved from http://www.newenglandburialsatsea.com/burial-at-sea-services/

3. Chinese Funeral Customs. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_chinaway/2004-03/03/content_46092.htm

4. Clark, J. (2014). How Cannibalism Works. Retrieved from http://people.howstuffworks.com/cannibalism2.htm

5. Fullard-Leo, B. (1998). Sacred Burial Practices. Retrieved from http://www.coffeetimes.com/feb98.htm

6. Gerber, C. (2014). Death Rituals in Africa. Retrieved from http://dying.lovetoknow.com/Death_Rituals_in_Africa

7. Graslund & Muller_Wille. (n.d). Burial customs in Scandinavia during the Viking Age. Retrieved from http://www.archeurope.com/_texts/00099.pdf

8. Holloway, A. (2014). Turning f the bones and the Madagascar dance with the dead. Retrieved from http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-africa/turning-bones-and-madagascar-dance-dead-001346

9. Kamrani, K. (2008). Cross Cultural Burial Rituals. Retrieved from http://anthropology.net/2008/06/30/cross-cultural-burial-rituals/

10. Kiribati- Religion and Expressive Culture. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Kiribati-Religion-and-Expressive-Culture.html

11. Mack,L. (2014). Chinese Funeral Traditions. Retrieved from http://chineseculture.about.com/od/chinesefestivals/a/Chinese-Funeral-Traditions.htm

12. Madagascar’s Dance with the Dead. (2008). Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7562898.stm

13. M-Rebeiro. (2014). Maasai Leave Remains to Predators. Retrieved from https://mysendoff.com/2011/06/maasai-predator-burial-2/

14. Plante, M.L. (n.d). Recently Discovered Hawaiian Religious and Burial Caves. Retrieved from http://www.vulcanospeleology.org/sym06/ISV6x03.pdf

15. Polony, A. (2013). How Ancient Nordic Viking Funeral Burials Reflect Common World Traditions. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/how-ancient-nordic-viking-funeral-burials-reflect-common-world-traditions

16. Polony, A. (2013). Traces of Several Religions in the Kiribati Ritual of Skull Burial. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/traces-of-several-religions-in-the-kiribati-skull-burial

17. Rebeiro-M. (2014). Ancient Hawaiian Burial Traditions. Retrieved from https://mysendoff.com/2011/06/ancient-hawaiian-burial-traditions/

18. Roel-hi. (2011). Burial Cliffs in Tana Toraja. Retrieved fromhttp://tourismresort-indonesia.blogspot.com/2011/06/burial-cliffs-in-tana-toraja.html

19. Ryan, K. (2013). Mongolian Air Sacrifice. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/mongolian-air-sacrifice

20. Ryan, K. (2013). The Little Known Ritual of Endocannibalism. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/the-little-known-ritual-of-endocannibalism

21. Sitar, D. (2013). Historic Haida Pit Burial. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/historic-haida-pit-burial

22. Smith, G. (2010). African Traditional Burial Rites. Retrieved from http://blackethics.com/640/african-traditional-burial-rites

23. Stevenson,R. (2014). Reflections on the Past in Bali. Retrieved from http://www.goworldtravel.com/travel-bali-indonesia-cremation-ceremony-intimate-glimpse-into-local-tradition/

24. Sumitra. (2011). Tribe Practices Finger Cutting as a Means of Grieving. Retrieved from http://www.odditycentral.com./pics/tribe-practices-finger-cutting-as-a-means-of-grieving.html

25. The Maasai Tribe. (n.d). Retrieved from http://kenya.gamelodges.co.za/maasai-tribe-east-africa.html

26. Tyagi, P. (2013). Extraordinary death rituals from around the world. Retrieved from http://www.speakingtree.in/spiritual-slideshow/seekers/faith-and-rituals/extraordinary-death-rituals-from-around-the-world/68914

27. Vlahides, J. (2009). Turning the Dead : Famadihana in Madagascar. Retrieved from http://www.lonelyplanet.com/africa/travel-tips-and-articles/16951

28. Wonderful Indonesia – Bali’s Most Magnificent Cremation Ceremonies. (2013). Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Republic of Indonesia. Retrieved from http://www.indonesia.travel/en/destination/277/ubud/article/50/bali-s-most-magnificent-cremation-ceremonies

29. Zakaria, M. (2014). Only In Africa : Burial In Rural East Africa – Maasai Tribe Leave Remains to Predators. Retrieved from http://infoboxx.com/index.php/component/k2/item/1215-only-in-africa-burial-in-rural-east-africa-maasai-tribe-leave-remains-to-predators

30. Zink, G. (2014). Bali Fire Burials. Retrieved from http://blog.sevenponds.com/cultural-perspectives/bali-fire-burials

Conclusion

     Alhamdulillah, I am writing the last entry for this post which is conclusion. I feel relieved after finishing this last entry. Honestly, this blog's topic has fully exposed me to the world's unique burials. I can improve my knowledge about the variety of cultures and traditions from the entire world. There are a few of the rituals that have scared me to death as they involve creepy activities in order to complete the burial rituals. I don't expect that there are some cultures that practice eating the human flesh, finger amputation, and the other unique burial rituals. They are out of my mind and yet, interesting to be known. I hope the objectives that I have mentioned earlier in the introduction post will be reached successfully with the existence of this blog. So I hope that this blog will be beneficial to all you and made you have clear understanding about the unique burial traditions of various ethnics and cultures from all over the world. I sincerely hope that my lecturer of this subject(Digital & Mobile Communication), Madam Hawinda binti Karmon will feel satisfied with my work since I have put extra efforts in designing this blog and researching the unique burials that I can share to the readers from all cultures all over the world. So, thank you so much for reading.     

Famadihana

     Hello readers! Here we meet again in this entry. So today, I will share with all of you about one of the unique burials in Madagascar which is called Famadihana. It is also known as "turning of the bones". This festival is celebrated every seven years or so which family crypts are going to be opened up and the remaining of dead ancestors will be taken out in order to wrap them with a new cloth. The most interesting part of this burial is, the Malagasy will dance with the corpses cheerfully in joy. In addition, the live music will be played, animals are sacrificed and meat is distributed to all of guests and the family members. The elders have responsibility to explain to their children about the importance of the dead who are lying before them. Famadihana is considered as a day to show and express your feeling to the family how much you love them. 

The picture shows Malagasy are happily dancing with the dead during
Famadihana festival - courtesy of Google

     According to their belief, people do not create from mud, but from bodies of the ancestors. They also believe that unless the body is fully decomposed, the deceased do not leave this world permanently and available to communicate with the living. So, until the time they are gone forever, love and affection towards them are shown through the Famadihana festival. This festival is quite costly to be conducted. Some people believe that the expensive cost to carry out this Famadihana festival is such a waste, some may believe that it is impossible to talk to the deceased. In a good way, some people believe that Famadihana festival has the ability to strengthen the family's bonding between the generations.

The Malagasy are carrying the dead during Famadihana
festival - courtesy of Google

So what is your honest opinion on this type of burial? As for me, I think it is very interesting because the best part of this festival is dancing with corpse. It is fascinating because I think they are very brave to go near the dead body. This is very impressive, I think. So that's all for this entry. Before I finish writing, I will delightedly share to you a video about this Famadihana festival. Happy watching!

                          The video shows about the Famadihana festival - courtesy of Youtube

Ritual Finger Amputation

     Well hye readers! Here we come the next entry for this blog. So now, I mean to share to all of you about the ritual finger amputation which is famous in Papua, Indonesia. This ritual of Dani tribe is totally true. Sounds creepy? Yes it is. It is also painful. The members of this tribe normally cut off their fingers as a sign of expressing their sadness at funeral ceremonies. Come along with the finger amputation, they also smeared their faces with ashes and clay which symbolized the feeling of sorrow.

     It is not so surprising to see most women of this tribe involve with this kind of ritual. If the deceased is believed and considered to be extra powerful, their spirits will contain equal power too. In order to win over these spirits, several shocking practices must be followed by members of the tribe. Girls who are related to the deceased will have their upper part of their fingers been cut off. Before the fingers are cut off, they will be tied with a string for over 30 minutes. After the amputation ritual, the finger tips will be left to dry, before they are burned and after that, their ashes will be buried in a special place in Papua. 

     As for me, honestly I feel scared to see their fingers are cut off in order to express their sadness because they have experienced the loss of their loved ones. So what about you? How do you feel about this type of burial? I am hoping that you will enjoy reading this entry. Happy reading!

The picture shows the Dani woman whose fingers are cut off as a sign of grief - courtesy of Google

Traditional Chinese Burial

     Well hye! So for this entry, I will generously explain about the traditional Chinese burial customs. According to my knowledge, I know that Chinese does not practice cremation in their society. However, Chinese takes the burial matter in a serious way in their society. The improper funeral steps can cause a bad fortune and disaster on the family of the deceased. Chinese funeral rites and burial customs are normally determined by the age of the deceased, cause of death, status and position in society and according to their marital status.

     According to one of the Chinese customs, the elder should never show respect to someone younger than them. If the deceased is a young bachelor, for instance, his body is prohibited from bringing back home and must remain at the funeral parlor. His parents must not perform prayers to their son. Since he is unmarried, he does not have any children to perform the prayer to him. This is the reason why the body cannot be brought into the family home. Unfortunately, if an infant or child is meeting his death, no funeral rites will be performed as respect cannot be shown to a younger person.The child will be buried in silence situation. It is really heartbreaking, isn't it?

     A traditional Chinese burial begins before a death occurs. The coffin will be served to the deceased. Before being placed in the coffin, the corpse will be cleaned with a damp towel dusted with talcum powder and dressed in his or her best clothes. All of the other clothes of the deceased are going to be burnt. In addition, a white cloth is hung over the doorway to the house and a gong is placed to the left of the entrance if the deceased is a male and to the right is female.

The funeral of the Chinese culture - courtesy of Google

So I guess that's all for this entry. Hope you will enjoy reading this entry. Happy reading!
 

Endocannibalism

     Hye readers! We meet again at twelve entry for this blog. So for now, I will share to all of you about the worst death ritual ever. It is called Endocannibalism. Why is this Endocannibalism terrible? This is because it is a practice where people will eat their own dead. The tribes in South America and Australia are known for practicing this creepy ritual. According to my recent research, I have found out that endocannibalism is an ancient ritual which involves in eating the flesh of a family member of friend who has passed away. Doesn't it sound scary? For me, yes it is. The tribes that practice this type of ritual believe that with eating the flesh of the dead will enable them to absorb the loved one's wisdom through the ritual. 

   

     This ritual is heavily focusing on women and children to consume the flesh of Fore males. To those who consume this must follow certain protocol for instance, a woman has to eat her brother's brain or the hands of her brother-in-law in order to complete this ritual. The consumption of each body parts symbolized the different ability that they will get from the dead person that he had during his lifetime. In India, few tribes were known to eat the human flesh because they believe that they can get the supernatural powers and immortality. 

The picture shows the endocannibalism ritual that involves the eating of human flesh - courtesy of Google

So I think that's all I can provide for this entry. Honestly, this type of burial scared me to death. I can't imagine how people have appetite to eat the human flesh, moreover, the flesh is their family members' of friends'. Creepy, isn't it? So that's all. Happy reading!

Africa Burial And Mourning Customs

     Hye readers! We meet again at the eleventh entry for this blog. So, for this entry, I will share to you about the burial and mourning customs which is famous in Africa. There are numerous of burial tradition in Africa but I will only be focusing to its burial and mourning customs. The ritual of the burial and mourning customs starts with the dead body removal the home. A hole is created in the side of home. During the body removal, it is first taken the feet out of the house through the hole instead of door. This is to help the spirit in finding the easiest way back into the home. Thorns and sticks are placed during the journey of transporting the body to the place of burial and zigzag pattern is used to make the spirit confuse. These precautions steps are practiced in their society to avoid the spirit from bothering the living creatures. 

     

     It is very common to sacrifice some animals as the part of death ritual in Africa. Ox is always chosen to be sacrificed during the ritual as it is believed that this animal will be a companion to the deceased to the land of their ancestors. Besides that, this animal will be served to the mourners. Some families will choose to sacrifice the animals in several months or even longer after the person has met his or her death. According to the African custom, somebody is never truly died until there is no one left among the living people seem to remember them. Before the funeral is done, an animal will be killed as a sign of ritual bloodletting. The Africans trust that blood needs to be shed in order to avoid the bad luck in the family soon.

An animal needs to be sacrificed right before the funeral ritual is done - courtesy of Google

     Family members of the dead person must attend the burial except for children and unmarried individuals. The family will be given the priority to stand on the side of the graveyard and the other people will stand on the other graveyard side. Nobody is allowed to speak even a word during the burial. In order to help the journey of the spirit easier to meet their ancestors, personal items are buried altogether with the deceased. After the burial has ended, the mourners will return to the family's home. They will wipe the dust of the graveyard from their feet and some other mourners will place the pieces of aloe plant in water to ultimately remove misfortune. Besides that, Christians will also sprinkle the mourners with holy water because it is believed can be a purification process to them.

The mourners at the burial site are mourning for the deceased - courtesy of Google

Such a long post of the entry, isn't it? I want to provide the additional information of this type of burial which is some families in Africa will follow a strict mourning. The men will shave their hair from head and face, as a sign of death and new life. Family members are expected to wear black clothing on their backs for weeks or a year period of time. Furthermore, I also found out that widows are supposedly to mourn for a year and children who experienced the loss of parents will mourn for about three months. So I guess that's all for this entry. Happy reading! 

Burial Cliffs in Tana Toraja

     Hello readers! Here we come to the tenth entry of this blog. For now, I am intended to share to all of you about burial cliffs in Tana Toraja. Toraja is located in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is well-known of cheerful environment of the way to treat death and the burial ground of unique carved in sheer rock. Toraja is one of the most magnificent tourist destinations in Indonesia as it has green hills of South Sulawesi in it. It is the home for Toraja tribe. Most of the members in Toraja tribe is Christian and was converted during the Dutch Occupation in the previous days. Even they are already being converted, their beliefs still remain the same and can be seen clearly during the celebration of funeral and burial customs. Toraja is very obsessed with death, but not in the bad way. During the burial ceremony, it is like going-away celebration that will provide dozens of water buffalo and pigs for the feast to be enjoyed by the whole community in Toraja.  

The picture shows the unique burial cliffs in Tana Toraja -  courtesy of Google

     Every member of the Toraja tribe has to ensure that he raised enough money during his lifetime so that his family can afford to make the best party in town when he left this world soon. The dead body will be kept under the family home for years after his death. During this particular time, the rest of the family will see him not as "deceased" but as "sick" and raise adequate money for the actual funeral. This ceremony will be attended by hundred of guests. Furthermore, travelers are welcomed to attend the celebration with the condition of not wearing anything black or red. 

     Besides that, the Toraja tribe members will be buried in the ground. They also will be placed in tombs in the cliffs nearby or in wooden coffins hanging on the side of the mountains. One of the most popular burial sites in the area is Lemo. It looks like a piece of Swiss cheese boulder, with an additional corresponding hole carved coffins and a balcony for the "tau tau" which means sized wooden statue representing the deceased. In the old days, the statue only shows gender deceased, but now the sculptor is trying their best to make them look exactly like the actual people. Statue of the dead body will be placed together with the other deceased once the body is placed in a tomb stone so that his spirit can keep the offspring.   

The picture shows "tau tau", it looks like a piece of Swiss cheese boulder, with an additional
corresponding hole carved coffins and a balcony - courtesy of Google

The results when the sculptor tried the best effort to make the dead bodies look like
the actual people in the cliff - courtesy of Google 

     How do you view this tradition? It looks unique and interesting for sure right? In the other side, I can conclude that I can see the creativity of Toraja tribe members when it comes to make the dead bodies look exactly like the real people. Toraja tribe members are quite obsessed with the death and they will throw out the party to serve some food to the guests during the burial ceremony. So I guess that's all for this entry. Hope it will improve your knowledge in certain burial ceremony that is being conducted in Toraja. Happy reading!

Ocean Burial

     Hello readers! So here we come to the ninth entry for this topic. Now, I feel so elated to share to you about Ocean Burial which is famous to some families who want to bury their loved ones at the sea. This type of burial does not necessarily need to be conducted in certain cultures and ethnics. Actually, it depends on the families all over the world if they have the intention to bury their loved ones at the sea. Luckily, if they want to carry out this type of burial, they can always get excellent services from some companies which offer the ocean burial service such as New England Burial at Sea and Newport Landing. These companies provide outstanding burial at sea service as they are expert in this field. 

     In depth, normally, those families who love the ocean and feel that they are connected to it will choose to do ocean burial to their loved ones who has passed away. These companies also provide burial at sea services which can be custom-tailored according to the family wishes, customs and requests. The families can choose the services such as ash scatterings at sea, full body burials, and viewing from shore services. While handling with the sadness of the lose of their loved ones, they can also relax their mind by viewing the beautiful environment at the sea. So that the families will always calm down which is good for their mind and body even if they have to deal with lose. 

The picture shows the full body burial at sea - courtesy of Google

The picture shows the ash scattering at sea - courtesy of Google

The flowers must come along with the burial at sea ceremony - courtesy of Google

One of the family members is doing the ash scatterings at sea - courtesy of Google 

     Honestly, before this, I thought ocean burial is a must in certain societies. But after spending some time doing research about this, I have found out that ocean burial is an option to the families who have the intention to bury their loved ones at sea as mentioned earlier. So I guess that's all for this entry. Happy reading guys!

Cave Burial - Hawaii

     Hye ! We are back again with the eighth entry today. I am so delighted to share about the next bizarre burial according to Hawaii custom which is Cave Burial. Does the dead body is just simply buried in the cave? Or it is anything else that Hawaii people do to complete this burial? Actually,this kind of burial was practiced in the ancient time. Normally, the dead body was laid out in the cave with his or her knees drawn up to the chest. A rope was wrapped around the dead person's legs and it has been placed around his or her neck. After that, the rope will be pulled tight to position the of the body and shaped into a round shape. The tapa cloth ( it was made from the bark of the paper mulberry tree) is used to wrap the deceased and then it will be prepared for the burial tradition. 

The cave in Hawaii which involved with cave burial - courtesy of Google

The "tapa cloth" is used to wrap the dead body before the burial activity is done - courtesy of Google

     There are some cases involved with the removal of the dead body's internal organs and the body cavity will be filled with salt. This acts as a preservative method before the burial is carried out. Hawaiian believes that the bones of the dead body must be treated with massive respect because they contained divine power or as know as "mana". As usual, when a king of their kingdom died, his skull, leg and arm bones will be preserved. They will be preserved, guarded or hidden for the person who is very possessed with the bones of an ancestor which is believed will be beneficial from the power contained in them. 

The picture shows the skulls found in the cave somewhere in Hawaii - courtesy of Google

     How do you feel with this burial tradition? As for me, I am a little bit impressed because I can get to know that the real tradition of Hawaiian when it comes to burial things. I think this culture is very unique because they use cave as a place to conduct the burial ceremony. Their belief is also unique because they think that bones of the dead body are very powerful and must be treated with respect. So, I think that's all for this entry. I sincerely hope that this post will expose the readers to the unique belief of Hawaiian in conducting burial activity in the ancient time. Till we meet again, goodbye and happy reading!

Skull Burial - Kiribati

   Hye! I have another new post to be shared today. I will generously share about the skull burial that is being practiced in Kiribati Island. When someone has died, he or she will be laid out in the home for a few days as a sign of respect from their loved ones. In addition, if someone who has passed away is a renowned person in the community, it will take longer time to keep and place him or her in the house(between three days and more). Next, the body will be buried in the cemetery or near the family's house. Surprisingly, seven months later, the body will be dig out, the skull is going to be removed and after that, it will reburied once again. Mourners oil is used to polished the skulls. The family will offer and treat him or her with food and tobacco. Normally, the family keeps the skull in their house in order to invite the spirit to return. The widow and children of someone who has passed away will sleep and also eat together with the skull to express their love towards him. In addition, it is actually very common to see they carry the skull everywhere they go.

The picture shows the old generation of Kiribati Island people live together with the skull- courtesy of Google

The skulls in Kiribati Island - courtesy of Google

     So far, this is the most amazing burial tradition that I have ever explored. I can't imagine how people live together with skulls for the rest of their life. Can you imagine it?  It is amazing and scary, too. I can't stand to stare at those skulls for longer time. For the sake of love, it has been proven that human are able to do anything even after their loved ones are gone forever. So that's all the information that I can provide for this entry. Hope you enjoy reading it!

Predator Burial - Masai Tribe

Masai People - courtesy of Google

     Well hye, we are back again with the sixth entry for this topic. Now, I would like to share to the readers about one of the unique burials which can fully catch my attention to ultimately find more about it. It is the predator burial in Masai Tribe which is located in South Africa. The Masai people normally do not conduct the burial ceremony for the dead bodies. The reason that they do not bury these dead bodies is because they believe that dead bodies are harmful to one of the earth sources such as soil. They will only spend time and energy to bury the chosen people for instance, chiefs, as a sign of massive respect towards them. Masai people will just leave the dead bodies of commoners to the natural predators so this is why they are well-known of the burial predator in the world.

The dead body of commoners usually are left to the natural predators - courtesy of Google

Masai people also believe that when you are dead, so you are no longer exist in this world and afterlife does not exist. That's why they seem to be neglecting the burial tradition in their culture. Furthermore, when the dead body is not being touched by the predators after some time, it is considered as a bad omen. So, what the families will do is coating the body with blood and fat to make it looks more luscious to attract the predators. This is my very first time to get to know this type of burial. I never knew that there is a group of people who do not believe in burying people for some reasons. Well, every tradition has its own culture right? But for me, this tradition is very unique. That's all for this entry. Happy reading!

Fire Burial - Bali

     Hye, so here we meet again at this fifth entry. I am about to share about one of the unique burials that I found interesting in Bali which is Fire Burial. This type of burial requires the villagers to follow some rules and rituals in order to make this ceremony as a success. The Balinese commonly believed that through the body cremation, the soul can finally be released from the temporary vessel to reach the afterlife. When someone has died, his or her body must go through a burning session for the soul to return to its five components known as the panca maha bhita (earth,wind,fire,water and ether) to fasten the speed of it to the afterlife.

     With following the right rituals, the soul is believed to finally freed from the body to experience a reborn or completely reach moksa, the existence in the higher kingdom of the world above. The cremations in Bali are luxurious and quite opulent. People with higher status require more preparations and decorations for this magnificent ceremony. According to this reason, the dead body is buried for quite a some time before the family members or community can afford to collect adequate funds to do this ceremony.

The colourful bull is prepared during the cremation - courtesy of Google

The look of the bull after being burnt - courtesy of Google

     The soul of the dead body that is believed wander around will be recalled to rejoin the body a few days before the day of the fire burial ceremony. It is brought to the house to be bathed over and over again, groomed and attended the revival served by relatives. The purification of the soul happens when the ashes are placed in the sea. This means that the soul is fully released. The Balinese believe that this soul will reborn in another body in the future.

After the cremation, the ashes will be placed in the sea in order to get purification of soul - courtesy of Google

     Don't you feel this bizarre tradition is awesome? Honestly, I am feeling that way as I have never seen something like this before. I never know that Balinese will complete their burial tradition in such way. I feel impressed because through this kind of tradition, it shows that Balinese always work as a team and it has strengthen their bond. So I guess that's all for this entry. Happy reading guys!

Viking Burial - Scandinavia

     Hye, we are back again with the fourth entry for this blog. Now, I will delightedly story about the Viking Burial in Scandinavia. Do you know what exactly the viking burial is? To make the readers clear about what is viking burial, so I have done some researches in order to completely understand the meaning of it. According to the information that I have found, viking burial consists of cremation(burning) of a dead body in a ship. The vikings are commonly believed that the burial of the dead bodies must be taken care and handled carefully to make sure that they will be at peace in the upcoming afterlife.

The Viking People - courtesy of Google

     Usually, the Viking great warriors and members of the aristocracy will be set to rest in their longships. There are two ways to bury these dead body in the longships. The first method is, the dead body will be buried in a ground that is surrounded by ship shaped burial plots marked by stones. Secondly, they will be burnt and send off to the sea.

The ship shaped burial plots marked by stones - courtesy of Google

This ship is on fire and it consists of dead body - courtesy of Google

                     The video shows the ritual of Viking Burial in Scandinavia - courtesy of Youtube

     Furthermore, the Vikings will be buried with some chosen belongings that they believed may need in the afterlife for instance, weapons and animals. I believe that this viking burial tradition is unique because the slave will be sacrificed at the burial for the reason to accompany his or her master into the afterlife to serve him there. Viking with different social status will be offering different wishes for example, some people can choose who they want to be accompanied in the afterlife. They can choose whether to be accompanied by their spouse or close relative. It is so different from other burial tradition right? I think the picture of the ship being burnt is so beautiful because it is a great view to me. So I think that's all for this entry. Enjoy your reading!

Pit Burial- Pacific Northwest Haida

     Hye,let's move on to the third entry for world's unique burial. My third entry will story about pit burial on Pacific Northwest Haida. The Haida people (American northwest coast) do not believe in individual burial. People who have died are believed to be buried in a large open pit behind their village according to their tradition.

The picture shows a group of Haida People in Pacific Northwest Haida - courtesy of Google

     This large pit is opened for the commoners to be buried. But for the respected people such as shamans,chiefs or warriors, they will receive special treatment when they die. As Haida people have massive respect towards them, so that their burial will be a little more special compared to the commoners. These special burials require them to be preserved exclusively in a small wooden box.

 Small wooden box to bury shamans,chiefs or warriors - courtesy of Google

 Another example of small wooden box to bury shamans,chiefs or warriors - courtesy of Google

     This box is actually very small in size to keep an adult human body, so what the Haida people will do is they crush the remains body with clubs to fit in that small box. That sounds so ridiculous, isn't it? According to their tradition, the box will be placed with a totem pole in front of the longhouse of the man's tribe. The various icons are being displayed by the totem poles at the Haida's Longhouse. They will function as guardians of the dead body's spirit as it will make its way to the journey into the upcoming world after this. 

 Haida's Longhouse - courtesy of Google

Another example of Haida's Longhouse - courtesy of Google

Furthermore, Haida people believe that after death, a person's soul will be released and taken up by newborn members of the family. When the newborn babies have arrived in the family, their actions and features will be watched carefully by the family members to detect whose soul they had inherited. Their home will act as a protection to these souls until death and we can see that the cycle will repeat over and over again. Quite interesting, isn't? I love the carvings on the Haida Longhouse the most. It is extraordinary beautiful. Back to the main topic, this tradition makes me realize that not all cultures practice burying the dead body individually.  The tradition is also attractive to be known by people all around the world. So, that's all for this entry. Hope the readers will enjoy reading it!

Mongolian Air Sacrifice

     Have you ever heard about this Mongolian Air Sacrifice before? Honestly, I am not. This is my very first time hears about it. So I have made a little research about this one of a kind burial. I was fascinated by what I have found about this culture. Mongolian takes good care of the dead body. When someone die, the first thing Mongolian will do is calling up the lamas. According to Google, lama is the Mongolian Buddhist Monk. Lamas are the most respected leader in their society, so their responsibility is conducting the entire process of the traditional burial ceremony. The lamas have full  power to decide on where and when the ceremony will take place. 

Google : Lamas (Mongolian Buddhist Monk)

     During the ceremony, family and friends of the someone who has passed away will prey and offer food. It is because they want to chase the evil spirits away. Besides that, in order to prevent evil spirits from coming near to the dead body, blue stones will be placed around he or she. Mongolian also believes that the good spirits will visit the dead body, so they burn incense and leave out food for them. The ongoing process of ceremony will not allow anybody to touch the dead body except for the lamas. The lamas will be the only people who can touch the dead body but must follow certain process to avoid evil spirits from contacting the dead body. When the time to move the dead body has come, they must be passed through a window or hole in the wall as to avoid evil spirits from creeping in through the door.After that, when the dead body is taken away from the village, she or he will be placed on the ground and encircles by stones. Finally, the dead body will be left to natural predators and local dogs.

Natural predators are eating the dead body - courtesy of Google

     When the physical body is no longer there, the stone outline that encircles the dead body is aimed to represent his or her spirit. The Mongolian strongly believe that if they do not complete any each one of the steps stated above, they will be haunt by karma. Don't you think that their tradition is unique? Yes, I am thinking that way because our Malay tradition and Mongolian tradition are really different from one another. That's all for this entry. Thanks for spending your time to read this entry. :)

                                                                                                 

Let's get started!

     First of all,alhamdulillah, finally I am writing my first entry. This is just a simple introduction and a little teaser about my blog's topic which is World's Unique Burials. The existence of this blog is mainly aimed to fulfill my assignment needs in Digital and Mobile Communication subject that is being taught by Madam Hawinda binti Karmon. I will humbly explain and sincerely share knowledge about the world's unique burials in my next entries. All of these traditions have sent me to feel extremely impressive because they have never crossed over my mind before. I just got to know about a few of burial traditions before this.

This blog is created with this bizarre topic as to reach its three objectives which are :

• To be exposed with the uniqueness of burials custom all over the world
• To get to know what people from different cultures believe in practicing the variety of burial method in their community
• To increase the readers' knowledge about the differences of the unique way of burial traditions all around the world as they come from various places

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     So, I am hoping that this blog is going to improve people's knowledge about the unique burials all over the world and beneficial to all of you. Happy reading and kindly leave some comments to make this blog more interesting!