Editing Burial (section)

==Traditions==
=== Body positioning ===
[[File:Desert Cemetery Merzouga.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|A [[Muslim]] cemetery in [[Sahara]], with all graves placed at right angles to distant [[Mecca]]]]

Burials may be placed in a number of different positions. Bodies with the arms crossed date back to ancient cultures such as [[Chaldea]] in the 10th century BC, where the "X" symbolized their sky god. Later ancient [[Egyptian gods]] and royalty, from approximately 3500 B.C. are shown with crossed arms, such as the god [[Osiris|Osiris, the Lord of the Dead]], or mummified royalty with crossed arms in high and low body positions, depending upon the dynasty. The burial of bodies in the ''extended'' position, i.e., lying flat with arms and legs straight, or with the arms folded upon the chest, and with the [[Human eye|eyes]] and [[Human mouth|mouth]] closed. Extended burials may be ''supine'' (lying on the back) or ''prone'' (lying on the front). However, in some cultures, being buried face down shows marked disrespect like in the case of the Sioux.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Thornton Parker|first=William|title=Concerning Indian Burial Customs|url=https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1420&context=ocj}}</ref> Other [[ritual]] practices place the body in a ''flexed'' position with the legs bent or ''crouched'' with the legs folded up to the chest. Warriors in some ancient societies were buried in an ''upright'' position.  In [[Islam]], the body is placed in [[supine position]], hands along the sides and the head is turned to its right with the face towards the [[Qibla]]. Many cultures treat placement of dead people in an appropriate position to be a sign of respect even when burial is impossible.

In nonstandard burial practices, such as [[mass burial]], the body may be positioned arbitrarily. This can be a sign of disrespect to the deceased, or at least nonchalance on the part of the inhumer, or due to considerations of time and space.

====Orientation====
Most often, a burial will be oriented to a specific direction for religious purposes, as are the case for persons of the [[Abrahamic faiths]]. Standard Jewish burials are made supine east–west, with the head at the western end of the grave, in order to face [[Jerusalem]]. In other cases, the body may be buried on a north–south axis, or, simply facing towards the exit of the [[cemetery]] or burial grounds. This is done in order to facilitate the return to Israel foretold of all those who are resurrected at the [[Jewish eschatology|end of time]] following the coming of the [[Messiah in Judaism|Messiah]].  Historically, Christian burials followed similar principles, where the body was placed east–west, to mirror the layout of Christian [[Church (building)|churches]], which were themselves oriented as such for much the same reason; to view the coming of Christ on [[Judgment day]] ([[Christian eschatology|Eschaton]]). In many Christian traditions, ordained clergy are traditionally buried in the opposite orientation, and their coffins carried likewise, so that at the General Resurrection they may rise facing, and ready to minister to, their people.

In an [[Islamic funeral]], the grave should be aligned perpendicular to the [[Qibla]] (the direction to the [[Kaaba]] in [[Mecca]]) with the face turned to the right along the Qibla.

====Inverted burial====
For humans, maintaining an ''upside-down'' position, with the head vertically below the feet, is highly uncomfortable for any extended period of time, and consequently burial in that attitude (as opposed to attitudes of rest or watchfulness, as above) is highly unusual and generally symbolic. Occasionally [[suicide]]s and assassins were buried upside down, as a post-mortem punishment and (as with [[#Burial at cross-roads|burial at cross-roads]]) to inhibit the activities of the resulting [[undead]].

In ''[[Gulliver's Travels]]'', the [[Lilliputian]]s buried their dead upside down:
{{Blockquote|They bury their dead with their heads directly downward, because they hold an opinion, that in eleven thousand moons they are all to rise again; in which period the earth (which they conceive to be flat) will turn upside down, and by this means they shall, at their resurrection, be found ready standing on their feet. The learnèd among them confess the absurdity of this doctrine; but the practice still continues, in compliance to the vulgar.|Jonathan Swift|[[s:Gulliver's Travels/Part I/Chapter VI|Gulliver's Travels, Part I, Chapter VI]]}}

Swift's notion of inverted burial might seem the highest flight of fancy, but it appears that among English [[millenarian]]s the idea that the world would be "turned upside down" at the Apocalypse enjoyed some currency.  There is at least one attested case of a person being buried upside down by instruction; a [[Peter Labilliere|Major Peter Labilliere]] of [[Dorking]] (d. 4 June 1800) lies thus upon the summit of [[Box Hill, Surrey|Box Hill]].<ref>{{cite book |last1= Lander |first1= J |title= Peter Labilliere: The Man Buried Upside Down on Box Hill |year= 2000 |publisher= Post Press |location= Chertsey |isbn= 978-0-9532424-1-2}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Simpson |first=Jacqueline |title=The Miller's tomb: facts, gossip, and legend [1]|journal=Folklore |date=August 2005 |jstor=30035277 |doi=10.1080/00155870500140230 |volume=116 |issue=2 |pages=189–200 |s2cid=162322450 }}</ref> Similar stories have attached themselves to other noted eccentrics, particularly in southern England, but not always with a foundation in truth.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Simpson|first=Jacqueline|title=The World Upside down Shall Be: A Note on the Folklore of Doomsday|journal=The Journal of American Folklore|volume=91|issue=359|pages=559–567|date=January–March 1978|doi=10.2307/539574|jstor=539574}}</ref>

=== Burial traditions throughout the world ===

==== South Korea ====
[[South Korea]]'s funeral arrangements have drastically changed in the course of only two decades according to Chang-Won Park.<ref name=":6" /> Park states that around the 1980s at home funeral ceremonies were the general norm, straying away from anywhere that was not a family home. Dying close to home, with friends and family, was considered a 'good death', while dying away from home was considered a 'bad death'. This gradually changed as the upper and middle class started holding funerals in the mortuaries of hospitals. This posed an issue for hospitals because of the rapid increase in funerals being held and maxing occupancy. This resolved when a law was passed to allow the civilian population to hold funerals in the mortuaries of hospitals. The lower class then followed suit, copying the newly set traditions of the upper classes. With this change, the practice of cremation became viewed more as an alternative to traditional burials. Cremation was first introduced by [[Buddhism]], but was banned in 1470.<ref name=":6" /> It was not until the Japanese colonization period that cremation was reintroduced in 1945 and later lifted the ban. It took until 1998 for cremation to rapidly grow in popularity.<ref name=":6" />

==== Tana Toraja ====
A [[TED Talk]] by Kelli Swazey<ref name=":7">{{Citation|last=Swazey|first=Kelli|title=Life that doesn't end with death|date=October 2013 |url=https://www.ted.com/talks/kelli_swazey_life_that_doesn_t_end_with_death|language=en|access-date=28 April 2017}}</ref> discusses how [[Tana Toraja Regency|Tana Toraja]], a Sulawesi province in Eastern Indonesia, experiences death as a process, rather than an event. The culture of Tana Toraja views funerals as the most important event in a person's life. Because of this importance placed on death, Tana Toraja landscape is covered in the rituals and events transpired after death. The hierarchy of an individual's life is based on the sacrifices of animals made after their death. Funerals tend to be celebrated by Tana Toraja people, typically lasting days to even weeks long. Death is seen as a transformation, rather than a private loss.<ref name=":7" /> A Torajan is not considered 'dead' until their family members are able to collect the resources necessary to hold a funeral that expresses the status of the deceased. Until these funerals are upheld the deceased are held in [[Tongkonan]], built to house corpses that are not considered 'dead'.<ref name=":7" /> The deceased can be held in Tongkonan for years, waiting for their families to collect the necessary resources to hold a funeral. The Tongkonan represents both the identity of the family and the process of birth and death. The process of birth and death is shown by having the houses that individuals are born in be the same structure as the Tongkonan, houses that individuals die in. Up until the funeral the deceased being housed in the Tongkonan are symbolically treated as members of the family, still being cared for by family members.<ref name=":7" />

==== Australian Aboriginals (Northern Territory) ====
Northern Territory [[Australian Aboriginals]] have unique traditions associated with a loved one's death. The death of a loved one sparks a series of events such as smoking out the spirit, a feast, and leaving out the body to decompose.<ref name=":8">{{Cite journal|last1=McGrath|first1=Pam|last2=Phillips|first2=Emma|date=1 October 2008|title=Insights on end-of-life ceremonial practices of Australian Aboriginal peoples|url=http://www.collegianjournal.com/article/S1322-7696(08)00024-3/abstract|journal=Collegian|language=en|volume=15|issue=4|pages=125–133|doi=10.1016/j.colegn.2008.03.002|issn=1322-7696|pmid=19112922}}</ref> Immediately after death, a smoking ceremony is held in the deceased's home. The smoking ceremonies purpose is to expel the spirit of the deceased from their living quarters. A feast is held where mourners are covered in [[ochre]], an earthy pigment associated with clay, while they eat and dance. The traditional corpse disposal of the Aboriginals includes covering the corpse in leaves on a platform. The corpse is then left to decompose.<ref name=":8" />

==== Iranian people ====
Graves are free if the owner is poor, some ancient people {{Ill|مرگ و مراسم تدفین در ایران باستان|lt=ancient Iranians burial|fa}} colored the dead body while others feed the body to vultures and birds or burned the bodies.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-08-03 |title=هزینه کفن و دفن «۵۰۰هزار تومانی» در تهران؛ عضو شورای شهر می‌گوید هر تهرانی یک «قبر مجانی» دارد |url=https://ir.voanews.com/a/latestnews_corona-covid19-iran-vaccine-iran-tehran-death/6129176.html |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=صدای آمریکا |language=fa}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title= تعرفه قبرها در بهشت زهرا (س) اعلام شد|url=https://www.irna.ir/news/84672633/%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%B1%D9%81%D9%87-%D9%82%D8%A8%D8%B1%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D9%87%D8%B4%D8%AA-%D8%B2%D9%87%D8%B1%D8%A7-%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D8%B9%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%B4%D8%AF |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=www.irna.ir |date=6 March 2022 |language=fa}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=جوادی |first=عباس |date=2017-10-20 |title=پارسیان هند و زرتشتیان ایران |language=fa |work=رادیو فردا |url=https://www.radiofarda.com/a/djavadi-book/28783730.html |access-date=2023-06-09}}</ref> Body parts cut during the procedure are sometimes buried separately.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-11 |title=جزئیات خوفناک دفن اعضای قطع شده بدن در بهشت زهرا {{!}} مردی برای پای قطع شده‌اش قبر خرید |url=https://www.hamshahrionline.ir/news/734333/جزئیات-خوفناک-دفن-اعضای-قطع-شده-بدن-در-بهشت-زهرا-مردی-برای |access-date=2023-06-09 |website=www.hamshahrionline.ir |language=fa}}</ref>
[[File:Zoroastrian_Towers_of_Silence_outside_Yazd,_Yazd_province,_Iran.jpg|thumb|Zoroastrian [[Tower of Silence|Towers of Silence]] outside [[Yazd]], [[Yazd province]], [[Iran]]]]

===Burial among African-American slaves===
{{More citations needed section|date=May 2008}}
In the [[African-American slave]] community, slaves quickly familiarized themselves with funeral procedures and the location of gravesites of family and friends. Specific slaves were assigned to prepare dead bodies, build coffins, dig graves, and construct headstones. Slave funerals were typically at night when the workday was over, with the master present to view all the ceremonial procedures. Slaves from nearby plantations were regularly in attendance.

At death, a slave's body was wrapped in cloth. The hands were placed across the chest, and a metal plate was placed on top of their hands. The reasoning for the plate was to hinder their return home by suppressing any spirits in the coffin. Often, personal property was buried with slaves to appease spirits. The coffins were nailed shut once the body was inside, and carried by hand or wagon, depending on the property designated for slave burial site.

Slaves were buried oriented East to West, with feet at the Eastern end (head at the Western end, thus raising facing East). According to Christian doctrine, this orientation permitted rising to face the return of Christ without having to turn around upon the call of [[Gabriel]]'s trumpet.  Gabriel's trumpet would be blown near the Eastern sunrise.

===Burial in the Baháʼí Faith===
In the [[Baháʼí Faith]], burial law prescribes both the location of burial and burial practices and precludes cremation of the dead. It is forbidden to carry the body for more than one hour's journey from the place of death. Before interment the body should be wrapped in a shroud of silk or cotton, and a ring should be placed on its finger bearing the inscription "I came forth from God, and return unto Him, detached from all save Him, holding fast to His Name, the Merciful, the Compassionate". The coffin should be of crystal, stone or hard fine wood. Also, before interment, a specific Prayer for the Dead<ref>{{cite web|url=http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/KA/ka-14.html |title=Baháʼí Reference Library – The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, pp. 101–2 |publisher=Reference.bahai.org |date=31 December 2010 |access-date=25 March 2011}}</ref> is ordained. The body should be placed with the feet facing the [[Qiblih]]. The formal prayer and the ring are meant to be used for those who have reached 15 years of age.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bahai-library.com/compilation_bahai_burial |title=Baháʼí Burial |publisher=Bahai-library.com |access-date=25 March 2011}}</ref>