Funerals

Abstract

Across the Theravāda Buddhist world, funerals have often been considered to be the most important life cycle ritual. Although cremation is increasingly becoming the norm today, a historical-comparative perspective reveals that Theravāda Buddhist funerary practices have varied widely. Drawing on a range of historical and anthropological sources, this chapter describes significant changes in funerary practices in central and northern Thailand over the course of the twentieth century. It highlights four major differences, namely, in the overall disposition of the deceased, the location, the timing, and the treatment of final remains. This comparison of central and northern Thai funerary practices reveals that simple generalizations about contemporary “Theravāda Buddhist” funerary practices belie the fact that each country has had its own complex political history of changing religious beliefs and funerary practices.