chopped up and fed to the vultures, a glimpse into the closely-guarded tradition of the tibetan sky...

7/27/2019 Chopped up and fed to the vultures, a glimpse into the closely-guarded tradition of the Tibetan sky funeral _ Mail

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7/30/13 Chopped up and fed to the vultures, a glimpse into the closely-guarded tradition of the Tibetan sky funeral | Mail Online

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Chopped up and fed to the vultures, a

haunting glimpse into the closely-

guarded tradition of the Tibetan sky buria

Sky burials are a funerary practice in the Chinese provinces of Tibet,Qinghai, and Inner Mongolia and in Mongolia

The majority of Tibetans adhere to Vajrayana Buddhism, which

teaches the transmigration of spirits

They do not see a need to preserve the body, as it is now an empty

vessel, so they dispose of it through a sky burial

The body is chopped up and left out for the vultures to feed on

PUBLISHED: 13:38 GMT, 24 July 2013 | UPDATED: 08:05 GMT, 25 July 2013

These remarkable photos give a glimpse into the closely-guarded tradition of Tibetan skyburials, where bodies are chopped up and fed to the vultures.

Sky burials are a funerary practice in the Chinese provinces of Tibet, Qinghai, and InnerMongolia and in Mongolia.

The majority of Tibetans and many Mongolians adhere to Vajrayana Buddhism, which teaches

the transmigration of spirits.

This means they do not see a need to preserve the body, as it is now an empty vessel, so they

dispose of it through a sky burial.

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Morbid: A lama walks past a flock of vultures after a sky burial. The sky burial is a funerary practice in which the body is cut up and fed to the vultures


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View: Local lamas and tourists look at a flock of vultures. Sky burial is the usual means for disposing of the corpses people who are not high lamas


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Beliefs: A vulture sails above a flock resting on a hillside. The majority of Tibetans and many Mongolians adhere to Vajrayana Buddhism, which teaches the

transmigration of spirits. There is no need to preserve the body, as it is now an empty vessel

Dispoasal: The function of the sky burial is to dispose of the remains in as generous way - the donation of human flesh to the vultures is considered virtuous because it


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saves the lives of small animals that the vultures might otherwise capture for food

Ritual: The body parts are left in the Tower of Silence for a year, exposed to the elements and birds - men and women are placed in different sections

In the days leading up to the ceremony monks - known as lamas - may chant mantra around the body and burn juniper incense.

The body is then chopped into pieces by either monks - known as lamas - or more commonly, by rogyapas (body-breakers).

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Eyewitness accounts suggest the body-breakers do the grim task in high-spirits - according to Buddhist teaching, this makes it easier for the soul of thedeceased to move on.

It is difficult to ascertain the exact process as Tibetans strongly object to visits by the merely curious, but it is thought the whole body is given to thevultures.

A haunting glimpse into the Tibetan sky burial
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-2371786/Migrant-Bhotiya-people-pilgrimage-town-Badrinaths-economy-alive.htmlhttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-2371998/Dozens-towns-villages-Himachal-Pradesh-flood-alert-rising-waters-Tibets-Parchu-Lake-trigger-emergency-precautions.html


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Process: Local lamas walk past the Tower of Silence after a sky burial. The corpse is broken up into small chunks and juniper incense is burned to summon the

vultures


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Glimpse: It is difficult to ascertain the exact process as Tibetans strongly object to visits by the merely curious


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Tradition: A lama prays in front of a flock of vultures. Prior to the procedure, monks may chant mantra around the body and burn juniper incense

Reflection: A Sky burial is a funerary practice in the Chinese provinces of Tibet, Qinghai, and Inner Mongolia and in Mongolia proper


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When only the bones are left, the pieces are broken up with mallets, ground with tsampa (bar ley flour with tea and yak butter, or milk), and given to the crows and hawk

that have waited for the vultures to depart


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High spirits: Eyewitness accounts suggest the body-breakers do the grim task in high-spirits - according to Buddhist teaching, this makes it easier for the soul of the

deceased to move on

Some stories suggest the body parts are left in the Tower of Silence for a year, exposed to theelements and birds - men and women are placed in different sections.

Then when only the bones are left, the pieces are broken up with mallets, ground with tsampa(barley flour with tea and yak butter, or milk), and given to the crows and hawks that have waitedfor the vultures to depart.

The function of the sky burial is simply to dispose of the remains in as generous a way aspossible - this donation of human flesh to the vultures is considered virtuous because it saves

the lives of small animals that the vultures might otherwise capture for food.

The function of the sky burial is simply to dispose of the remains in as generous a way as

possible reports TravelChina- the process is consideredvirtuous because it saves the lives of

small animals that the vultures might otherwise capture for food.
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/tibet/sky-buria.htm

chopped up and fed to the vultures, a glimpse into the closely-guarded tradition of the tibetan sky...

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