There are many interesting things, customs and traditions related to death. Some are even humorous. Winston Churchill was almost challenging the Almighty when he said; “I’m ready to meet my maker. Whether my maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter.” I have always loved this Irish poem written in 1895 entitled “Where are the wicked folk buried?” These few verses are the ones I am going to start with in this short thought:
Where are the wicked folk buried?
Tell me, grey-haired sexton, said I, Where in the field are the wicked folk laid? I have wandered the quiet old graveyard through, And studied the epitaphs, old and new, But on monument, obelisk, pillar, or stone, I read no evil that men have done. In our journey through life, the farther we speed, The better we learn that humility’s need Is charity’s spirit that prompts us to find Rather virtue than vice in the lives of our kind.’
Tombstones, obituaries and funeral talks are a source of a great deal of wisdom and solace as well as much humor. The following obituary is the most contemporary. “NOLAND, Mary Anne Alfriend. Faced with the prospect of voting for either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, Mary Anne Noland of Richmond chose, instead, to pass into the eternal love of God on Sunday, May 15, 2016.”
That was one way out but hardly one that many would elect to take.
There is even a great deal of humor written about the preparation of the body. For example a loving but not too bright son, on his deathbed requested that, “He be buried in the same suit that his father was buried in.” Another rather interesting but gory preparation story; “Has to do with a woman coming to the funeral home and requesting that her husband be buried in a blue suit. He had on a black one during the viewing. The funeral was scheduled for that afternoon and he wasn’t quite sure how he was going to get everything ready in time. Fortunately, another man’s body came in for him to prepare as well. He had on a blue suit and the woman asked that he be buried in a black suit. To satisfy both woman and meet his schedule, too, he simply exchanged heads.”
The following various old customs were extracted from a funeral manual:
Death has always been both celebrated and feared. As far back as 60,000 BC, man buried their dead with ritual and ceremony. Researchers have even found evidence that Neanderthals, or early men, buried their dead with flowers, much as we do today. In many cemeteries, the vast majority of graves are oriented in such a manner that the bodies lie with their heads to the West and their feet to the East. This very old custom appears to originate with the Pagan Sun worshippers, but is primarily attributed to Christians who believe that the final summons to Judgment will come from the East. Other, early burial rites and customs, were practiced to protect the living, by appeasing the spirits who were thought to have caused the person’s death. Such ghost protection rituals and superstitions have varied extensively with time and place, as well as with religious perception, but many are still in use today. The custom of shutting the eyes of the deceased is believed to have begun this way, done in an attempt to close a “window” from the living world to the spirit world. Covering the face of the deceased with a sheet comes from pagan beliefs that the spirit of the deceased escaped through the mouth. In some cultures, the home of the deceased was burned or destroyed to keep his spirit from returning; in others the doors were unlocked and windows were opened to ensure that the soul was able to escape. In 19th century Europe and America the dead were carried out of the house feet first, in order to prevent the spirit from looking back into the house and beckoning another member of the family to follow him, or so that he couldn’t see where he was going and would be unable to return. Mirrors were also covered, usually with black crepe, so the soul would not get trapped and be left unable to pass to the other side. Family photographs were also sometimes turned face-down to prevent any of the close relatives and friends of the deceased from being possessed by the spirit of the dead. Some cultures took their fear of ghosts to an extreme. The Saxons of early England cut off the feet of their dead so the corpse would be unable to walk. Some aborigine tribes took the even more unusual step of cutting off the head of the dead, thinking this would leave the spirit too busy searching for his head to worry about the living. Cemeteries, the final stop on our journey from this world to the next, are monuments (pun intended!) to some of the most unusual rituals to ward off spirits, and home to some of our darkest, most terrifying legends and lore. The use of tombstones may go back to the belief that ghosts could be weighed down. Mazes found at the entrance to many ancient tombs are thought to have been constructed to keep the deceased from returning to the world as a spirit, since it was believed that ghosts could only travel in a straight line. Some people even considered it necessary for the funeral procession to return from the graveside by a different path from the one taken with the deceased, so that the departed’s ghost wouldn’t be able to follow them home. Some of the rituals which we now practice as a sign of respect to the deceased, may also be rooted in a fear of spirits. Beating on the grave, the firing of guns, funeral bells, and wailing chants were all used by some cultures to scare away other ghosts at the cemetery. Some Mongolian and Tibetan cultures are famous for practicing “sky burial,” placing the body of the deceased on a high, unprotected place to be consumed by wildlife and the elements. This is part of the Vajrayana Buddhist belief of “transmigration of spirits, which teaches that respecting the body after death is needless as it is just an empty vessel.” That teaching is true but that body, that empty vessel, housed the spirit of our loved one during his/her sojourn on earth and therefore has a great deal of sentimental memory and meaning to those still living. It is the last thing that we can still see and hold onto of that special person in our lives before they are visually gone from us. It is important even though we may understand the eternal nature of life and that we will see them again in a different setting one day. Fortunately, some people do feel like they know what happens to the souls of men when they die. The scriptures, if believed, lay it out somewhat plainly, those who go without the knowledge of God and His Son and/or the unrepentant while yet breathing, will be assigned to a place referred to in the scriptures as, ‘Spirit Prison,’ where they will wait to be taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ, They will be taught by missionaries much like missionaries teach on earth. President Lorenzo Snow said that, “…very few there, will not accept it.” If they are accepting and then have their endowment work done in a Holy Temple on earth by proxy they will be released and may then begin to advance and progress. Those who have already prepared themselves before passing on will go to a place referred to in the scriptures as Paradise. Many of them will, among other things, be the missionaries to those in Spirit Prison. Families are the primary unit on earth as well as in heaven, they were the key unit and organization of eternity. Where are the wicked folk buried? This ‘On’ subject started out with the question, “Where are the wicked folks buried?” Following are the second and third verses of the poem I quoted at the first:
“The old Sexton stood by a grave newly made. With his chin on his hand, his hand on a spade
“Who is the judge when the soul takes its flight? Who is the Judge ‘twixt the wrong and the right? Which of us mortals shall dare to say?” The poem includes the verse: “Who is the judge when the soul takes its flight?” It is important even though we may understand the eternal nature of life and that we will see them again in a different setting one day. The good and the wicked are buried the same, in the same cemetery, for are we not afraid to judge; “With what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged.” (Matt: 7:2) For example; “A mother and son are walking through a cemetery, and pass by a headstone inscribed “Here lies a good lawyer and an honest man.” The little boy after reading the headstone, looked up at his mother, and asks “Mommy, why did they bury two men there?” He found out that both the good and the bad are buried in the same cemetery, maybe even in the same grave.