A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, respecting, sanctifying or
remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of
beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment
itself, to various monuments, prayers and rituals undertaken in their
honor. Customs vary widely between
cultures and between religious affiliations within cultures.
A memorial service, often called
a funeral, is often officiated by clergy from the decedent's, or bereaved's,
church or religion. A funeral may take
place at either a funeral home, church, crematorium or cemetery chapel. A funeral is held according to the family's
choosing, which may be a few days after the time of death, allowing family
members to attend the service.
The word funeral comes from the Latin funus, which had a variety of meanings, including the corpse and
the funerary rites themselves. Funeral
rites are as old as the human culture itself, predating modern Homo sapiens, to at least 300,000
years ago. For example, in
the Shanidar cave in Iraq, in Pontnewydd Cave in Wales and other sites across
Europe and the Near East, Neanderthal skeletons have been discovered with a
characteristic layer of flower pollen. This
has been interpreted as suggesting that Neanderthals believed in an afterlife.
The most simple and natural kind
of funeral monuments, and therefore the most ancient and universal, consist in
a mound of earth, or a heap of stones, raised over the body or ashes of the
departed. Ancient Jews had burial-places
upon the highways, in gardens and upon mountains. The primitive Greeks were buried in
established burial grounds in desert islands and outside the walls of towns. Tibetan Buddhists practice ritual dissection
or Sky Burials — the tradition of cutting up the dead into small pieces and
giving the remains to animals, particularly birds.
Within the United States and
Canada, in most cultural groups and regions, the funeral rituals can be divided
into three parts: visitation, funeral and the burial service.
At the visitation (also called a viewing,
wake or calling hours), in Christian
or secular Western custom, the body of the deceased person is placed on display
in the casket (also called a coffin or body container). The viewing often takes place on one or two
evenings before the funeral. In
the past, it was common practice to place the casket in the decedent’s home or
that of a relative for viewing. This practice continues in many areas of
Ireland and Scotland. The body is traditionally
dressed in the decedent's best clothes or a shroud.
A burial
service, conducted at the side of the grave, tomb, mausoleum or cremation, at
which the body of the decedent is buried or cremated at the conclusion. Sometimes, the burial service will
immediately follow the funeral, in which case a funeral procession travels from
the site of the memorial service to the burial site. In
some other cases, the burial service is the funeral, in which case the
procession might travel from the cemetery office to the gravesite. Other times, the burial service takes place at
a later time, when the final resting place is ready, if the death occurred in
the middle of winter.
It was
common to leave gifts with the deceased in many cultures. Both
men and women received grave goods, even if the corpse was to be burnt on a
pyre. A Norseman could also be buried
with a loved one or house thrall, who were buried alive with the person or in a
funeral pyre. The amount and the value
of the goods depended on which social group the dead person came from. It was important to bury the dead in the right
way so that he could join the afterlife with the same social standing that he
had had in life and to avoid becoming a homeless soul that wandered eternally.
Pagan funerals or crossings are not
singularly definable. The beliefs from
one pagan to another can differ greatly.
Death, like life, is as varied and multi-faceted as any human experience
and each funeral service should be tailored to the specific requirements of the
situation. This means a pagan funeral
only has guidelines and suggested rituals, but that the wishes of the deceased
are always respected.
Step
one, may be find out what pagan tradition the person followed in life. They may or may not have been 'out of the
broom closet', so tread with caution. If
there is a conflict with using a local coven or grove, a Unitarian Universalist
minister may be available to perform the rites.
If they were US military, the chaplain handbook has guidelines already
laid out.
Preparation of
the body begins with a washing. The body
can be washed with regular water, a few drops of salt water or water taken from
a special place. While washing, a
special blessing is usually said. Then,
the body is smudged with an appropriate incense for the cleansing, such as
sage, cedar or other incenses. After the
washing, the body may be wrapped in cloth or clothed with simple clothing.
Pagans do hold both funerals and
memorial services, which often combine prayers for healing, meditation,
offerings to nature and ancestors along with many other traditions. Most pagan funerals are conducted outside. The deceased may have had a special place that felt
very spiritual to him or her, like a forest or a seashore and you may want to
hold the funeral at that location.
Purple is commonly used for a pagan funeral to symbolize Spirit and the
soul. Rosemary is
sometimes used
as it is viewed as a herb of purity and protection. Photos, candles and other items related to
the person's life may also be added to the service altar.
Funeral services commonly include
prayers, readings from a sacred text, hymns and words of comfort by the
clergy. Frequently, a relative
or close friend will be asked to give a eulogy, which details happy memories
and accomplishments. Funeral
services are for the living as much as they are for the dead.
Many
of the different sects of the Wiccan religion have a core belief that focuses
on the Earth and its elements. Call the
corners at the beginning of the ceremony to assist. The first corner is the east air, the second
is the south fire, the third is the west water and the fourth is the north earth. Pay some kind of tribute to the spiritual
being that the person honored in life. Mourners may also share stories of the
deceased as a away to aid in the healing process. Music
played by those in attendance is usually incorporated, with drum use being very
common.
Tradition
dictates the body is laid directly into the Earth. Pagans can be either buried or cremated,
although if a pagan is cremated the ashes are usually spread and not buried. At the burial or scattering of ashes, more
prayers and rituals are performed that vary from person to person.
Cremation is an old custom;
it was the usual mode of disposing of a corpse in ancient Rome. Many Wiccans will request cremation so that
their bodies can be returned to the earth without being confined by a casket. Many Norse funerals took place on
land with the deceased being cremated on a pyre, a structure usually made of
wood, in a boat shape and piles of stone and soil being lain on top of the
burnt remains. Vikings were occasionally cremated in their
longships and afterwards the location of the site was marked with standing
stones.
Those with concerns about the effects on the
environment of traditional burial or cremation may choose to be buried in a
fashion more suited to their beliefs, a green burial. The decomposing body is believed to provide
nutrients to the soil promoting future growth.
They may choose to be buried in an all natural bio-degradable green
burial shroud, sometimes a simple coffin made of cardboard or other easily biodegradable material. Further, they may choose their final resting
place to be in a park or woodland, known as an eco-cemetery and may have a tree
planted over their grave as a contribution to the environment and a
remembrance.
The grave is often described as
an abode for the dead and it was also the location of ancestor reverence. The tradition
of putting out food and mead on the grave has survived into modern times,
in some parts of Scandinavia. This
tradition is a remainder of the ancestor worship that was common during early
Norse culture. If the dead were taken
care of, they would in return protect the homestead and its people and provide
for its fertility.
Because there is so much emphasis
on living a good life, there is little fear of death. Most are not that interested in their bodies
once they die, as their spirit has left the vessel it was using. So some do not mind if non Pagan family and
friends instead use a Catholic funeral rite.
Many times Wiccan customs may not be honored by other family members or
by state laws.
People should be encouraged to make
their wills long
before death specifying the style of their burial. It is extremely important for people whose
families do not approve of their religious choice that they specify in detail
these matters and appoint a lawyer as executor of the will.
Death happens to us all. If you don't care what happens, let others
know. If you do care what happens, let
others know. We do not fear
death. Death is natural and the one guarantee we all have.
O Great Spirit, Mother and
Father of us all, we ask for your Blessings on this our Ceremony of
thanksgiving, and honoring and blessing of (name). We stand at a Gateway now.
A Gateway that each of us must
step through at some time in our lives. (Name)
has stepped through this gateway already.
(His/Her) soul is immersed in
the shining light of the Unity that is the Mother and Father of us all.
The sadness and pain that we
feel now is in our knowledge and our experience of the fact that we ourselves
cannot yet cross that threshold to be with (name) until our time has come. Blessed Be!
tyr is the God of oaths,
justice, law, courage and warfare in Germanic Mythology, portrayed as a one
handed man. He is renowned for his great
wisdom, is unrivalled in his sense of duty and nerve. Tuesday is named after him.
