Which came first cremation or burial?

Scholars today quite generally agree that cremation probably began in any real sense during the early Stone Age – around 3000 B.C. – and most likely in Europe and the Near East. In the Mycenaean Age – circa 1000 B.C. – cremation became an integral part of the elaborate Grecian burial custom.

Do Brahmins cremate or bury?

In Karnataka except Brahmins, two major upper castes Lingayats&Vokkaligas bury their dead. Most OBC s, Dalits and Tribals bury their dead. Exactly. Some sects of Vokkaligas cremate too.

Why do we cover the face of the dead?

Funerary masks were frequently used to cover the face of the deceased. Generally their purpose was to represent the features of the deceased, both to honour them and to establish a relationship through the mask with the spirit world.

Why Hindu saints are buried?

Why are Sanyasis buried It is Hindu tradition to cremate their dead to release the soul of the deceased. According to Hinduism a Sanyasi has already relinquished all his earthly ties and lost moha on this physical body. So he need not be cremated to achieve the moksha.

Should a person be buried or cremated at the resurrection?

The wishes of other close family members and friends should also be considered in any decision, because they are the ones who will live with the decision and with the memories. At the resurrection it will not make any difference whether a person’s body has been buried or cremated.

How did the Hebrews cremate their dead?

The Hebrews did not normally cremate, except in most unusual cases of emergency, as in the case of Saul and his sons (1 Samuel 31:11-13). Later Babylonians burned their dead and deposited their ashes in ornate funerary urns, as did Greeks and Romans.

Why is a sannyasi cremated?

So a person is cremated for his soul to achieve after death what a sannyasi has already achieved before death. The sannyasin has no sacrament involving the sacred fire: he has the fire of knowledge (jnanagni)in him. His body is not cremated – that is there is no Agni-samskara for it- but interred as a matter of respect.

What does the Bible say about cremation?

Hebrews in later time, indicated by the numerous ossuaries found in New Testament Palestine, also practiced cremation.” Christians will want to show respect for the body. Even though the essential person or spirit has moved on to an eternal destiny, the body is the tangible reminder of all that person meant to us.