A Simple Introduction To International Funeral Rites

By Alta Alexander


Plans for funerals are not unique to western cultures or in the United States. Rites and ceremonies in celebration and honour of those who have died have always been around. They have been present in the time humans man has existed. Numerous rites and customs have roots on the religion the deceased observed. Customs of international funeral today point to unique celebrations varying by country and culture.

Whereas all funeral planning differ in accordance to individuals, there are no culturally universal demands for funerals to be the same. There are differing funeral customs observed internationally. In China, the number of people attending a funeral apparently increases the levels of luck a family will have. It represents how well a deceased will prosper in their afterlife. Professional hired mourners attend some funerals to increase attendance numbers in this regard.

Where the Philippines is concerned, funeral ceremonies in honour of a deceased, last from three to more than seven days. It is also common to have big numbers of visitors coming and staying for the entire ceremony. In Haiti, the family members have to take responsibility for most of the hands on planning for a funeral. This includes dressing and preparing the deceased body for the burial. Displays and expressions of grief are often set aside until every possession owned by the deceased leaves the home.

All the members of the Amish community in a town or village come out to share every aspect of the ceremony. The family takes full responsibility in as far as every traditional plan is concerned and where most rites happen in the funeral home. Simplicity is the basic tenet where even a wooden but simple box is often used. Very little work in cosmetic form happens on the body. Flowers and ornate stones are discouraged. Mourners observe bare minimum mourning dressing codes.

Cremation is virtually universal in Thailand. Rites include preparing the body for the ceremony with respective family members placing coins in the deceased mouth. White thread ties the feet and hands of the deceased. Candles, money and flowers go into their hands. Additional monetary gifts and flowers go onto the deceased cremation pyre.

Bolivians observe traditional funeral codes seen nowhere else worldwide. These include performing special and separate burial rites for the deceased clothes. Such rites, according to Bolivians, assist in releasing the soul of those departed into the after-world.

Most funeral rites and customs observed internationally are slight deviations from what many people are aware. For everyone, there is communal reverence for the departed and close attention is given to what they leave behind. For relatives and friends, the ceremony is usually an opportunity to come together in mourning regardless of distance one has to travel to get there.

Incorporating religious or traditional customs is a way to personalize a funeral planning effort. In many cases, this ceremony assists families assent to the beliefs and wishes of the deceased. In efforts at adherence to honoured practices and rites, people often instruct their respective families about how to go about carrying out their funerals. Some incorporate these instructions within their wills.




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