by Kate Torgovnick May

Joyce 譯

各國奇妙葬禮連連看

Death Is Not the End: Fascinating Funeral Traditions from Around the Globe

by Kate Torgovnick May

Joyce 譯

T he funerals I’ve attended have all been very much the same. Relatives and friends arrive in all black and take seats in the church or1)synagogue2)pews for a somber ceremony where prayers are said, memories are shared and tears are shed. The attendees walk slowly out to their cars and form a single fle line behind the3)hearse, arriving at the graveyard where they place roses on the4)casket just before it’s lowered into the ground. Then, they proceed to the immediate family’s home, where the doorbell rings with a steady stream of loved ones—casserole dishes in hand—since, in the days ahead, people often forget to eat.

Funeral practices are deeply ingrained in culture and around the globe hugely varied traditions refect a wide array of beliefs and values. Here, is a look at just a few of funeral traditions that might strike someone outside a culture as odd.

1) synagogue ['s?n?g?g] n. 猶太教會堂

2) pew [pju?] n. 教堂內的靠背長凳

3) hearse [h??s] n. 柩車，靈車

4) casket ['kɑ?sk?t] n. 棺材

Sky burial in Mongolia and Tibet

The New Orleans jazz funeral

It’s one of the5)prototypical images of New Orleans, Louisiana: the6)boisterous, jazz-tinged funeral procession.7)Fusing West African, French and African-American traditions, funerals in New Orleans strike a unique balance between joy and grief as mourners are lead by a marching band. The band plays sorrowful8)dirges at first, but once the body is buried, they shift to an upbeat note.9)Cathartic dancing is generally a part of the event, to commemorate the life of the deceased.

South Korean burial beads

In South Korea, a law passed in 2000 requires anyone burying a loved one to remove the grave after 60 years. Because of dwindling graveyard space and this resulting law,10)cremation has become much more popular. But families don’t always opt for ashes. Several companies there compress remains into gem-like beads in11)turquoise, pink or black. These “death beads” are then displayed in the home.

South Korean burial beads

5) prototypical [,pr??t?'t?p?k?l] adj. 典型的，象征性的

6) boisterous ['b??st?r?s] adj. 狂暴的，喧鬧的

7) fuse [fju?z] v. 融合

8) dirge ['d??d?] n. 挽歌，哀悼歌

9) cathartic [k?'θɑ?t?k] adj. 精神宣泄的

10) cremation [kr?'me???n] n. 燒，火葬

11) turquoise ['t??kwɑ?z] adj. 綠松色的

12) entomb [?n'tu?m] v. 埋葬，成為…的墳墓

13) transmigration [tr?nsma?'gre??(?)n] n. 輪回

14) embalm [?m'bɑ?m] v. 涂香油于（遺體），施以防腐劑

15) nix [n?ks] v. 禁止，拒絕

The New Orleans jazz funeral

Filipino death traditions

Many ethnic groups in the Philippines have unique funeral practices. The Benguet of Northwestern Philippines blindfold their dead and place them next to the main entrance of the house; their Tinguian neighbors dress bodies in their best clothes, sit them on a chair and place a lit cigarette in their lips. The Cavite?o, who live near Manila, bury their dead in a hollowed-out tree trunk. When someone becomes ill, they select the tree where they will eventually be12)entombed. Meanwhile, the Apayo, who live in the north, bury their dead under the kitchen.

Sky burial in Mongolia and Tibet

Many Vajrayana Buddhists in Mongolia and Tibet believe in the13)transmigration of spirits after death—that the soul moves on, while the body becomes an empty vessel. To return it to the earth, the body is chopped into pieces and placed on a mountaintop, which exposes it to the elements—including vultures. It’s a practice that’s been done for thousands of years and, according to a recent report, about 80% of Tibetans still choose it.

Green funerals

In the United States, more and more people are opting for environmentally friendly burials. This means skipping14)embalming processes,15)nixing traditional concrete vaults and getting 16)biodegradable, woven-willow caskets, which decompose into the ground. The Green Burial Council has approved 40 environmentally friendly cemeteries in the U.S.—way up from a decade ago. Another option: becoming a memorial “reef ball.” A company called Eternal Reefs compresses remains into a sphere that is attached to a reef in the ocean, providing a habitat for sea life.

Balinese cremation

“Strange as it seems, it is in their cremation ceremonies that the Balinese have their greatest fun,” Miguel Covarrubias wrote in the 1937 book, Island of Bali. In 2008, the island saw one of its most lavish cremations ever as Agung Suyasa, head of the royal family, was burned along with 6817)commoners. Thousands of volunteers gathered to carry a giant bamboo platform, an enormous wooden bull and wooden dragon. After a long procession, Suyasa’s body was eventually placed inside the bull and burned as the dragon stood witness. In the Balinese tradition, cremation releases the soul so it is free to inhabit a new body—and doing this is considered a sacred duty.

The turning of the bones in Madagascar

The Malagasy people of Madagascar have a famous ritual called “famadihana,” or “the turning of the bones.”O(jiān)nce every fve or seven years, a family has a celebration at its ancestral18)crypt where the bodies, wrapped in cloth, are19)exhumed and sprayed with wine or perfume. As a band plays at the lively event, family members dance with the bodies. For some, it’s a chance to pass family news to the deceased and ask for their blessings—for others, it’s a time to remember and tell stories of the dead.

Ghana fantasy coffins

Aboriginal20)mortuary rites in Australia

When a loved one dies in Aboriginal society in Australia’s Northern Territory, elaborate rituals begin. First, a smoking ceremony is held in the loved one’s living area to drive away their spirit. Next a feast is held, with mourners painted21)ochre as they partake in food and dance. The body is traditionally placed atop a platform and covered in leaves as it is left to decompose. It has been reported that in some traditions, fuids from the platform can help identify the deceased’s killer.

Ghana fantasy coffns

In Ghana, people aspire to be buried in coffins that represent their work or something they loved in life. These so-called “fantasy coffins” were recently popularized by Buzzfeed, which showed images of 2922)outrageous ones, from a coffin shaped like a Mercedes-Benz for a businessman and an oversized fish for a fisherman to a really big Bible for someone who loved going to church.

16) biodegradable [,ba???d?'gre?d?bl] adj. 生物所能分解的

17) commoner ['k?m?n?] n. 平民

18) crypt [kr?pt] n. 土窖，尤指位于教堂地下用作埋葬場所的地下室

19) exhume [eks'hju?m] v. 掘出，發(fā)掘

20) mortuary ['m??tj??r?] n. 停尸房，太平間

21) ochre ['??k?(r)] n. 赭石，赭色

22) outrageous [a?t're?d??s] adj. 極不尋常的，非常規(guī)的