The mystery of Tibetan sky burials

 

The mystery of Tibetan sky burials

 

Looking at the majestic Himalayas, the wise man Agudengba and the caravan leader Lacuo chatted about Tibetan folk customs. The topic turned to Tibetan funeral customs. What surprised the world even more was the peculiar sky burial.

Agudemba said:

Sky burial, or bird burial, is the most common funeral custom in Tibetan areas. The simplest way to put it is to let vultures eat the body of the deceased.

Sky burial is called "Du Chuijiewa" in Tibetan, which means "sending the corpse to the burial ground", or "Chado", which means "feeding the eagles".

There is a saying that sky burial is a burial custom formed under certain natural conditions and social environment. In ancient Tibetan society, there were “primitive sky burials” or “natural sky burials”.

Why is it said that Tibetan sky burials are naturally formed? Because Tibet is located in a plateau area thousands of feet high, with hard geology and few plants. Tibet is covered with frozen soil for most of the year. The frozen soil is hard and difficult to dig, and because there are few trees, it is difficult to bury, bury or cremate people in coffins. Therefore, the form of sky burial was adopted according to local conditions. This custom has a history of thousands of years.

However, according to some Tibetan historical documents, the history of Tibetan sky burial customs can be traced back to before the 7th century AD. According to "Red History" records: Ancient Bon religion divided the world into three parts: heaven, earth and underground, among which the gods occupied a relatively important position.

The first generation Zanpu of Tubo and the six subsequent Zanpu were all sons of the God of Heaven who descended to the human world along the ladder of heaven. After completing their human careers as instructed by the God of Heaven, they all returned to heaven along the ladder of Heaven. This is history. The above mentioned "Seven Kings of Tianchi" recorded in the book. The theory of sky burial has become even more mysterious.

After a Tibetan dies, the body is wrapped in white cloth and kept in a state of burial for one to several days. The lama is asked to recite sutras and a date is chosen for burial. During this period, a red clay jar is hung at the door of the house, and food is put into the jar for the deceased. soul use. On the day of the funeral, the family members took the corpse to the sky burial platform. Neither the body bearer nor the mourners were allowed to look back. The red clay pot was broken on the road and was later handed over to the sky burial master for disposal. Family members were not allowed to follow the body to the sky burial platform.

The sky burial platform is rectangular in shape, facing east and west, and is made of thick long square granite blanks. There is a stone pillar as thick as a bowl on the west side, and a hada is tied to the stone pillar, which is probably used to fix the head of the deceased. On the east side, there are two large stones about 50 centimeters higher than the base of the sky burial platform. There is an ax on one of the stones. On the west side, there are sharp knives and sharp blades scattered on the hillside, which are used by sky burial masters for sky burial. The tools and the funeral platform were stained with blood and looked a bit gloomy.

When they arrived at the sky burial platform, the sky burial master first made a fire with the cow dung he carried with him. After the fire was burning, he spread tsampa on it, and the green smoke curled up into the sky.

The sky burial master places the corpse on the sky burial platform, and the funeral director burns a fire and lights up the "mulberry" smoke. When the vultures in the distance see the thick smoke, they will fly over on their own initiative and gather in the nearby mountains, waiting to peck.

Afterwards, the sky burial master sat cross-legged, recited scriptures about salvation, shook the drum, and blew a trumpet made of human bones. When the eagles and eagles lying in the surrounding mountains heard the sound of the drum and trumpet, they flew into the sky and circled around the sky burial. In the sky above the stage, people landed one after another around the Sky Burial Master, forming a circle and quietly watching every move of the Sky Burial Master.

After the sky burial begins, the sky burial master opens the body bag, places the body face down on the sky burial platform, and fixes the head on the stone pillar with a hada.

The first knife fell on the back, first three times vertically, and then three horizontally, which meant: "Rest in peace." Then he dismembered the limbs, cut them into small pieces, and took out the internal organs. The sky burial masters stripped the bones of the remains and smashed the bones with stones.

After these were processed, the Sky Burial Master signaled to the surrounding eagles. After being greeted by the Sky Burial Master, the eagles stepped forward one after another. In a short time, all the muscles and internal organs were eaten cleanly.

The sky burial master will decompose the corpse and let vultures peck at it. It is considered auspicious to eat all the bones. If there are any remaining bones, they will smash the remaining bones, mix them with tsampa, roll them into balls, and then glue the blood on the ground to dry, and then throw them away. Give it to the eagle until nothing is missing.

After doing all this, the sky burial master went down the mountain to wash his hands and knives, and the entire sky burial process came to an end.

The practice of sky burial is closely related to the rise of Tibetan Buddhism and the import of Indian culture.

Why do Tibetan sky burials involve Tibetan Buddhism?

Uncover the history of Tibet’s unique sky burial rituals. We can find some answers from the origin of this custom.

Sky burial may have originated from India and Iran. Volume 2 of "The Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty" mentions bird burial. The Sutra of Practical Practice and Sacrifice advises people to divide their flesh and blood after death and donate them to the corpse forest. There is a story in the Buddhist scripture "Zhongjing Compilation of Miscellaneous Parables and Parables·Volume 1" about "King Shibi gave his body to a pigeon". Song Dynasty Li Fang's "Taiping Guangji" quoted Tang Jiao Lu's "Poor Mysterious Garden" record: "Dunxun country...its custom is that birds are buried after death. When death is over, relatives and guests are sent to the outside of the country with singing and dancing. There are birds as colorful as geese. Red, flying in thousands, the family shunned it. The birds pecked at the flesh and then disappeared, burning the bones and sinking into the sea. "Some people say that the sky burials in Tibet come from Atisha.

According to the records in the Chinese historical book "The Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty" about Tianzhu (ancient India), there was a custom of "a final funeral with three rites, three days of wild burial, abandoning the forest and drinking from animals", and believe that the custom of sky burial in Tibet originated from India. Ancient "forest burial" and "wild burial". It is not a local ritual passed down by the ancestors of the Tibetan people.

There are also records in this regard in Tibetan historical records, and it is clearly stated that the custom of sky burial was introduced in the late 11th and early 12th centuries by the famous Indian monk Tangpa Sangye who founded the Xijie and Jueyu sects in Tibetan areas. . It is said that when he was preaching the Dharma in Tibet, he vigorously promoted this burial custom and personally went to the sky burial platform to pray for the deceased.

From a traditional perspective, the custom of sky burial is very consistent with Buddhism and is a Tibetan custom closely related to the development of Buddhism.

In Buddhism, "giving" is one of the symbols of believers. The highest state of giving is to sacrifice one's life. There is a touching story of "giving one's life to feed a tiger" in the Buddhist scriptures. "Giving" is directly related to the key to whether a believer can become a Buddha and achieve enlightenment in the future, and the highest state of "giving" is "charity".

According to Buddhist teachings, after a person dies, the soul leaves the body and enters a new reincarnation, while the body is just as useless as a piece of clothing, and the body becomes a useless skin. However, feeding the corpse to the eagle after death can be regarded as the last good deed of the human body. Giving alms to other living creatures as "alms" can also be regarded as exerting its final value. Sky burial is the most complete form of charity. Sky burial does not mean that the deceased takes the soul to heaven on the wings of an eagle.

Tibetan Buddhism believes that sky burial is in line with the spirit of "sacrifice yourself to save the tiger" mentioned in the biography of Sakyamuni, and the soul of the deceased can also ascend to heaven with the eagle. Because Buddhists believe that offering the body to the eagle is a meritorious deed that can redeem sins during life and facilitate the reincarnation of the soul, they agree with this burial method and gradually become a popular custom in Tibetan areas.

In Tibetan funeral culture, the soul and the body are two concepts that exist independently. Whether it is the understanding of death in Tibetan primitive religion (Bonjiao) or the explanation of death among Tibetan Buddhist believers, the soul and body are completely separated. divided. Feeding the body to the eagles is just the last act of charity for the dead person. The soul has left the body, so feeding it to the eagles is a last act of mercy. He dedicated his body to the vultures and invisible creatures on the sky burial platform, thus doing a meritorious deed at the end of his life.

Tibetan funeral customs are closely related to the lives of Tibetan people. Sky burials contain Buddha’s concepts of compassion, love, benefiting others, and charity. It should be affirmed that they are all deeply influenced by religion and have many commonalities. People’s concepts on death are almost the same. It is precisely because of Buddhism’s compassionate heart. It is fully reflected in sky burial, so this is the reason why the vast majority of Tibetans choose this burial ceremony.

Agudengba looked at the snow-capped mountain pagoda in the distance and sang a Tibetan mourning song "Sky Burial":

 

The Han people mainly bury in the ground.

They pay great attention to heavy burials and generous burials.

And derived from visiting graves to worship ancestors.

Death symbolizes the unknown,

And always with a bit of fear.

When people face death,

Always filled with awe.

People will die as they live,

And it has always been rooted in my heart.

A funeral is a farewell to life,

It is also a comfort to the soul.

 

Tibetan sky burials are the most peculiar.

It's when people die,

Feed the eagles their carcasses.

If the eagle could soar high,

Proof that the soul has ascended to heaven.

Sky burial shocks the soul,

Layers upon layers of walls of bones,

The mysterious sky burial platform,

The majestic and solemn monk,

Showing the solemnity of sky burial.

 

Sky burial actually originated from India.

That is a wild burial in Buddhism.

Buddhism emphasizes the cycle of life and death.

The human soul is immortal,

Sacrifice yourself to feed the eagles to atone for your sins;

Only then can the soul be reincarnated,

After this belief was accepted,

Sky burial has become a Tibetan custom.

There is a concept in Buddhism,

That is charity and self-sacrifice,

Sky burial is a great sacrifice.

 

After the deceased stops breathing,

It is necessary to take off the clothes before death.

Born into the world with nothing,

Return everything after death.

All matter in the world,

They are all shackles attached to the body,

Only by removing all shackles,

Only then can you get reincarnation.

Abandon all distracting thoughts in the world,

Face the world with sincerity and sincerity,

It is respect from the heart.

People with profound Buddhist teachings are here,

It's like a guide,

Only by following the guide,

You won't become a lonely ghost.

The last step is shocking,

The corpse was taken to the sky burial platform,

First, you have to burn incense and pray;

Then use pine smoke to gather the eagles.

The flesh and bones of corpses are fed to eagles,

Until everything is swallowed up,

Sky burial is officially over.

 

After Buddhism was introduced to Tibet,

It has long been integrated into the bones and blood of the Tibetan people,

In their beliefs,

Body and soul are two different things.

The human body can decay,

But the soul will live forever.

When a person is about to die,

Use your body to make the final donation,

Have the courage to throw away your skin,

Able to comprehend all things in this world,

He is the one who has no distracting thoughts.

Buddhism pays attention to life and death, destiny.

Believe that people are destined in this life,

People can only follow this trajectory,

Only then can we avoid going astray,

Enter the paradise world smoothly.