Who’s to say what’s odd or weird when dealing with a topic such as death? Every culture has their own way of dealing and interpreting death. With that said… we think we’ve found some over the top burial rituals. If you’re looking for the weirdest funerals from around the world – we got them right here. We found 21 of the most bizarre and unusual customs from around the globe.
From cannibalism and feeding dead bodies to vultures to burying your family under your kitchen, there are some pretty bizarre ways to send off the dead. Would the best life insurance companies even pay for these funerals? Well, considering they’ll pay your beneficiary – the better question is: Will your beneficiary pay for your eccentric send off?
Weirdest Funerals [Infographic]
To start, we put together a Top 10 Weirdest funerals infographic.
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21 weird funerals, death rituals & strange funerals from around the globe
Our infographic just scratched the surface on some of the strange and unusual funerals. We’ll explore 21 strange funerals and burial practices from around the world.
1. Public Cremation
No Smores here. Crestone, Colorado provides the USA’s only legal, public open-air cremation facility. You read that correctly…Right here in the United States, mourners can be seen stacking logs and pinyon pine which burns more intensely than other kinds of kindling. The cost? $500 will cover the wood, land use, stretcher and fire-department availability.
2. sky burial
Human bird feed: If you’re part of a Tibetan sky burial, your dead body will be cut up into many pieces and left out for the local birds to consume. The sky burial is seen as compassionate as well as an act of charity by some Buddhists.
3. Ocean Reef Memorial
Die and become a marine habitat? A U.S. based company named Eternal Reefs will take your cremated remains and incorporate it into a cement sphere or “reef ball”. You’ll be a permanent home for local sea life!
4. Endocannibalism
Eating of the Dead: Endocannibalism is defined by the of eating human flesh from the same community – such as a local tribe, social group or society. Some time ago, the Yanomami of South America, the Wari people of Brazil and the Melanesians of Papua New Guinea would consume the local dead as a way to get rid of the fear of death.
5. Jazz burial
A rockin good time! New Orleans and Jazz go hand in hand, so why now incorporate it into a funeral ritual? A New Orleans funeral procession starts out with a big horn band playing sad tunes in the beginning, but soon afterward – upbeat jazz and blues tunes roll in followed by energetic dancing.
6. kitchen Funeral
Don’t bury where you eat? If you visit the northern Philippines, you may come across the Apayo who are known to bury family member’s coffins under the kitchen areas in their homes. The Apayo also place some items in the coffin for dead’s afterlife journey, like an alcoholic beverage called basi.
7. totem pole funeral
A smashing ending: The Haida people, a native North American culture, had a pretty unique funeral ritual. If the a shaman or chief died, their bodies would be pulverized with clubs. The remains would be placed into a suitcase type box and put into a totem pole. This totem pole would be placed in front of the dead’s home.
8. Fantasy coffins
How about a fantasy coffin? In the Ghana culture, you’ll find that people are fond of being buried into something that reflects or represents how they lived & they’ll continue with their profession in the afterlife. Want some examples of these fantasy coffins? You may see a caskets shaped like buildings, animals, ships, cars or an airplane!
9. Crossroads Suicide Burial
Don’t meet me at the Crossroads: Suicide was seen as a crime in ancient England. The bodies of those who committed suicide were buried at the crossroads. The reasoning for this was to confuse the spirits of the dead. The English believed that suicidal spirits would return to their home or village and haunt them.
10. Skull Burial
Can you dig it? The Kiribati is a Pacific island nation lays out their dead in their homes. Depending on the status of the deceased, they’ll be laid out for up to 12 days. They will then be buried. However, months after burial – they body is dug up and their skull is removed! Once the skull is polished and cleansed, it’s displayed in their home.
11. Turning of the bones
That’s a wrap! Famadihana is a death ritual in Madagascar by the Malagasy. During this funeral ritual, called the turning of the bones, the Malagasy bring the bodies of their dead from their family crypts. They’ll rewrap all of their corpses in brand new cloth and then dance with their corpse sacks.
12. Finger amputations
Cut your losses. This death ritual is currently banned (thank goodness), but in West Papua, New Guinea – the Dani people will cut off some of their fingers if they’re related to the deceased. It’s not just anyone either… it’s the children and women of that are related to the deceased!
13. Blindfolded funeral
Knock knock, anyone home? In Northwestern Philippines, the Benguet will blindfold their deceased and place them next to the entrance of their home. – the dead body sitting up. You might say visitors are always greeted by a warm welcome. On second thought, a dead body would be a “cold welcome.”
14. Tinguian Funeral
Got a light? In the Philippines, the Tinguian people will dress the bodies of the dead with their best outfits and garments. They will then sit the deceased on a chair, put a cigarette between their lips and light it. This definitely ranks high in the creepy funerals category.
15. Tree burial
Timber!!! In the Philippines there is a community of people known as the Caviteño. When they are dying due to old age or health issues. To prepare for their death, they’ll go into the woods and pick a tree. The family builds a tiny tree hut for the soon to be deceased family member. When death arrives, the dead are vertically entombed vertically within the hollowed tree trunk.
16. Sati
Now that’s a fire! Sati is now one of the unusual funerals that’s illegal. Sati was an Indian funeral ritual where the Hindu widow would lie with her dead husband and would be burned alive on a funeral pyre. There were other versions of this which included drowning and buried alive with the dead husband.
17. Tower of Silence
Quite the production. With a Zoroastrian vulture funeral the deceased is washed and cleansed with bull urine. It’s then visited by a Sagdid or holy dog. Finally, it’s put on top of a structure called the Tower of Silence. This is where the body is eaten by hungry vultures.
18. Aboriginal Burial
Moisturizer? In Australia, the aboriginal people left their dead relatives out in the open so they could rot under dirt and leaves. After decomposing, the liquified body would sometimes be rubbed on the skins of the children. It was thought to provide and pass along the best qualities of the deceased. The remaining bones were then worn around the neck’s of the family or shown off in caves.
19. Glowing Buddhas
A special glow: Who has the highest cremation rate in the world? It’s Japan at around 99.9%. A special columbarium in Tokyo provides glowing Buddha statues. All but 1 of the statues light up in a blue glowing light. The exception is for the visiting mourners – their Buddha glows white and shows exactly where their deceased family member is from the rest of the displays.
20. German Rental
Rent to own? Germans, like several other European cultures – don’t buy burial plots. Germans will rent them for around 20 years. What happens when the time is up? The dead are put into a mass grave.
21. Burial beads
Change the dead into colorful beads: This custom can be found in South Korea where dead people are compressed into little colorful beads that are shown off in homes. The most common colors of the burial beads? They’re typically a shiny blue/green, black or pink!
Well there you have it – 21 of the world’s weirdest funerals and bizarre traditions. Be sure to check out some of our other posts like Game of Thrones Life Insurance or our Life Insurance Companies Top 10 list.
Resources
- http://www.icysedgwick.com/3-weird-things-at-crossroads/
- https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/18/travel/madagascar-turning-bones/index.html
- Eternal Reefs What To Expect
- https://scholarblogs.emory.edu/gravematters/2017/02/24/grief-ritual-finger-amputaion/
- http://www.nbcnews.com/id/41347202/ns/us_news-life/t/one-sky-funeral-pyres-colo-town/#.XPGJY9NKj1I
