Editing Cairn (section)

===Asia and the Pacific===

[[File:TallOvoo.JPG|thumb|right|A Mongolian ceremonial cairn (''[[ovoo]]'')]]
Starting in the [[Bronze Age]], burial [[cist]]s were sometimes interred into cairns, which would be situated in conspicuous positions, often on the skyline above the village of the deceased. Though most often found in the British Isles, evidence of Bronze Age cists have been found in [[Mongolia]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Houle |first1=Jean-Luc |chapter=Bronze Age Mongolia |editor1=((Oxford Handbooks Editorial Board)) |title=The Oxford Handbook of Topics in Archaeology |date=2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |edition=Online|doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935413.013.20 |chapter-url= https://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935413.001.0001/oxfordhb-9780199935413-e-20 |isbn=978-0-19-993541-3}}</ref> The stones may have been thought to deter grave robbers and scavengers. Another explanation is that they were to [[Revenant (folklore)|stop the dead from rising]]. There remains a [[Judaism|Jewish]] tradition of placing small stones on a person's grave as a token of respect, known as [[visitation stones]], though this is generally to relate the longevity of stone to the eternal nature of the soul and is not usually done in a cairn fashion.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why Do Jews Put Pebbles on Tombstones? |url=https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3002484/jewish/Why-Do-Jews-Put-Pebbles-on-Tombstones.htm |website=chabad.org}}</ref> [[Stupa]]s in India and [[Tibet]] probably started out in a similar fashion, although they now generally contain the ashes of a [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] saint or [[lama]].{{Citation needed|date=September 2022}}

A traditional and often decorated, heap-formed cairn called an ''[[ovoo]]'' is made in [[Mongolia]]. It primarily serves religious purposes, and finds use in both [[Tengriism|Tengriist]] and [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] ceremonies. Ovoos were also often used as landmarks and meeting points in traditional nomadic [[Culture of Mongolia|Mongolian culture]]. Traditional ceremonies still take place at ovoos today, and in a survey conducted, 75 participants out of 144 participants stated that they believe in ovoo ceremonies. However, mining and other industrial operations today threaten the ovoos<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dilemma of the Sacred Lands: Preserving Mongolia's Ovoos |url=https://thediplomat.com/2022/05/dilemma-of-the-sacred-lands-preserving-mongolias-ovoos/ |access-date=2022-09-21 |website=thediplomat.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

In [[Hawaii]], cairns, called by the [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] word {{lang|haw|ahu}}, are still being built today. Though in other cultures, the cairns were typically used as trail markers and sometimes funerary sites, the ancient Hawaiians also used them as altars or security towers.{{clarify|date=January 2021}}<ref>{{cite web |title=A Cultural History of Three Traditional Hawaiian Sites on the West Coast of Hawai'i Island |url=https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/kona/historyg.htm |website=National Park Service |access-date=14 November 2019}}</ref> The Hawaiian people are still building these cairns today, using them as the focal points for ceremonies honoring their ancestors and spirituality.<ref>{{cite web |title=About UH Mānoa Campus' Ahu |url=https://manoa.hawaii.edu/hshk/the-school/about-us/about-uh-manoa-campus-ahu/ |website=Hawai‘inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge |access-date=14 November 2019}}</ref>

In [[South Korea]], cairns are quite prevalent, often found along roadsides and trails, up on mountain peaks, and adjacent to Buddhist temples. Hikers frequently add stones to existing cairns trying to get just one more on top of the pile, to bring good luck. This tradition has its roots in the worship of San-shin, or Mountain Spirit, so often still revered in Korean culture.<ref name="san">{{cite book | title=Spirit of the Mountains - Korea's San-Shin and Traditions of Mountain Worship| last=Mason| first=David| year=1999| page=41| publisher=Hollym International Corp.| location=Seoul, South Korea; Elizabeth, New Jersey (US)| isbn=1-56591-107-5}}</ref>