Traditional Human Funerals in Southeast Asia and Beyond

Joachim Schliesinger

Digitized works by the same author (original publication date): Kambodscha—Ein Land sucht Anschluss an die Welt (1992). Hill Tribes of Vietnam 1—Introduction and Overview (1997). Hill Tribes of Vietnam 2—Profile of the Existing Hill Tribe Groups (1998). Ethnic Groups of Thailand—Non-Tai-Speaking Peoples (2000). Tai Groups of Thailand 1—Introduction and Overview (2001). Tai Groups of Thailand 2—Profile of the Existing Groups (2001). Ethnic Groups of Laos 1—Introduction and Overview (2003). Ethnic Groups of Laos 2—Profile of Austro-Asiatic-Speaking Peoples (2003). Ethnic Groups of Laos 3—Profile of Austro-Thai-Speaking Peoples (2003). Ethnic Groups of Laos 4—Profile of Sino-Tibetan-Speaking Peoples (2003). Ethnic Groups of Cambodia 1—Introduction and Overview (2011). Ethnic Groups of Cambodia 2—Profile of Austro-Asiatic-Speaking Peoples (2011). Ethnic Groups of Cambodia 3—Profile of Austro-Thai and Sinitic Speaking Peoples (2011). Elephants in Thailand 1—Mahouts and their Cultures Today (2010). Elephants in Thailand 2—Through the Ages (2012). Elephants in Thailand 3—White Elephants in Thailand and Neighboring Countries (2012).

Geisha—The Mysterious Japanese Entertainer (2012). Tortures and other Amenities in Asia—From the Himalayas to the Pacific Isles: From Medieval Times to Modern Days (2013). Sexuality in Asia—From South Asia to Japan (2013). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 1—Early Migration and Trade routes (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 2—Early Dominant Peoples of the Mainland Region (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 3—Indianization and the Temples of the Mainland; Part 1: Funan, Champa and Chenla (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 3—Indianization and the Temples of the Mainland; Part 2: Early States of Angkor (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 3—Indianization and the Temples of the Mainland; Part 3: Pre-Modern Thailand, Laos and Burma (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 4—Early Dominant Peoples of the Maritime Region (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 5—Part 1: Indianization of the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago (2015). Origin of Man in Southeast Asia 5—Part 2: Hindu Temples in the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago (2015). Origin of the Tai People 1—Historical Approach (2016). Origin of the Tai People 2—Linguistic Approach (2016). Origin of the Tai People 3—Genetic and Archaeological Approaches (2016).

William C. Dodd’s ‘The Tai Race’—Annotated and Illustrated (2016). The Kingdom of Phamniet—An Early Port State of Modern Southeastern Thailand (2017). Chanthaburi City—An Ancient, Multiethnic and Significant Municipality in Southeastern Thailand (2017) The Chong People—A Pearic-Speaking Group of Southeastern Thailand and Their Kin in the Region (2017). Traditional Cannibalism in Southeast Asia and Beyond (2017). Traditional Headhunting in Southeast Asia and Beyond (2017). Traditional Human Sacrifices in Southeast Asia and Beyond (2017). Traditional Human Funerals in Southeast Asia and Beyond (2017). Picture front cover: Air burial, Tibet Picture back cover: Toraja people walking the dead, Sulawesi, Indonesia

Traditional Human Funerals in Southeast Asia and Beyond

Copyright © 2017 Joachim Schliesinger.

ISBN 978-1-946765-72-7

Traditional Human Funerals in Southeast Asia and Beyond

Digitized by White Elephant Press in 2017.

All rights reserved.

Contents

Introduction 1

Explanation of the human funeral rite 3

Funerary customs 6

Prehistoric funeral rites 9

Methods of human disposal 12

Funerary tomb 24

Retainer sacrifice and burial goods 29

Funeral traditions of the main regional religions 33

Ancestor worship 46

Funerary practices in China 50

Funerary practices in Taiwan (former Formosa) 62

Funerary practices in Vietnam 68

Funerary practices in Laos 77

Funerary practices in Cambodia 86

Funerary practices in Thailand (former Siam) 94

Funerary practices in Burma (Myanmar) 107

Funerary practices in the Andaman Islands (India) 114

Funerary practices in the Malay Peninsula (West Malaysia) 121

Funerary practices in Indonesia 126

Funerary practices in Borneo 138

Funerary practices in the Philippines 142

Funerary practices in Oceania 146

Introduction

Intentional burials are one of the earliest detectable forms of religious practice.

Some scholars suggest that burial rites pre-dating modern Homo sapiens and dated to not less than 300,000 years ago. Evidence suggests that burial customs were developed at least since the time of the Neanderthals. They buried their dead in shallow graves along with stone tools and animal bones.

Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect the dead, from interment itself, to various ceremonies and rituals undertaken to honor the deceased. Cultures vary in their mode of respect.

Sketch of a 12,000-year-old burial of a shaman woman, Israel

Egyptian burial tomb

1

Different cultures, different ethnic groups and different religions share different approaches to memorializing their dead.

Funerary rites can last from anywhere from one day–for members of the Islam faith–to several days, weeks, months and even years, the latter in the case of reburial ceremonies.

In some cultures, families save up for long periods of time to raise the necessary resources for a lavish funeral, where sacrificial water buffalo will carry the deceased’s soul to the afterlife.

This work gives an overview of the main traditional funerary and burial practices of varies peoples in Southeast Asia and the regions beyond.

Welcome to traditional funeral practices!

Terracotta Army in the burial tomb of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, China

Burial chambers at Ruifeng Cliff, China

Air burial, Tibet

2

Traditional Human Funerals in Southeast Asia and Beyond gives an overview of the main traditional funerary and burial practices of varies peoples in Southeast Asia and neighboring regions. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect the dead, from interment itself, to various ceremonies and rituals undertaken to honor the deceased. Cultures vary in their mode of respect. Different cultures, different ethnic groups and different religions share different approaches to memorializing their dead. Funerary rites can last from anywhere from one day–for members of the Islam faith–to several days, weeks, months and even years, the latter in the case of reburial ceremonies. In some cultures, families save up for long periods of time to raise the necessary resources for a lavish funeral, where sacrificial water buffaloes will carry the deceased’s soul to the afterlife. The traditional funeral and burial practices are clarified with plenty of illustrations.