Buddhist - Scattering Ashes

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Sandallwood flowers used in Thai cremation ceremonies

The Thai king King Bhumibol Adulyadej was cremated last month (October 2017) and he has two cremation ceremonies, the first cremation is ceremonial and not actual, in the first ceremony they burnt ashes of sandalwood flowers. When I first saw this I was slightly confused, I thought they were referring to flowers of the sandalwood…

Iconic Buddhist monk’s cremation relics go on display

The Rosemead Buddhist temple in Los Angles is opening its door to the public, displaying a huge collection of relics. This year the collection has even more artefacts, perhaps the most notable of its new relics from the Venerable Thich Quang Duc. The Buddhist monk who in 1963 in south Vietnam set fire to…

Tibetan Buddhist thinking may not favour water burials for ashes

I have often thought that the more you read the less you really know, this I often feel when considering the stances of the various world religions and subdivisions thereof. Tibetan Bhuddiam has a slightly different take on many aspects of doctrine compared to other forms of Buddhism. Mr Khenpo Karma Tharchin Rinpoche, a senior lama of…

Make your own ashes: Japanese bone crushing apparatus for rent

Now here’s a franchise opportunity you are unlikely to see on Dragons Den: Rental of bone crushing apparatus. The Japanese tradition is to cremate and then place the bones of the loved one in an urn, I have already posted on this – Japanese cremation. Normally what happens is for the urn to be…

What Are the Pearl-Like Objects Found in Monks’ Ashes After Cremation? Still None the wiser!

Some time back I posted on the subject of the bead/pearl like objects occasionally found after a certain Buddhist monks are cremated – known as sarira or ringsels. These objects are highly prized and supposed to be a sign of divinity. However try as I might I could not find what they were or how they were…

Japanese Buddhist temples criticised for interring ashes sent through the post

Japan is a predominantly secular country although nominally a third (about 90 million people) follow the Buddhist tradition. Now a small number of temples are offering a postal service accepting cremation ashes through the post, which the priests then inter at the charnel house. This has come under some criticism. The reason given is…

The King of Cambodia – ashes scattered on the Mekong

King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia has been cremated, he had abdicated twice, led his country into the terror of the Khmer Rouge and then out again. He was cremated in a custom made 15 storey crematorium and then his ashes were scattered on the Mekong where hundreds of thousands of Cambodians gathered in the capital Phnom Penh…

Buddhist relics revealed after cremation

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Here is a little article that caught my eye a Chinese website from Shenzhen (near Hong Kong) and give us a little window into other cultural cremation practices. After a seven day cremation ceremony of the Buddhist master Benhuan, his cremator was opened and it revealed a number of relics, these appear to be ball…

Buddha Beads: Cremation ashes into glass beads

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Well it is not exactly cremation jewellery, but it is another unique way of keeping a loved one ashes. I have previous posted about the rise in cremation in South Korea in south east Asia. The ancestor in holds a very special place within parts of Asia culture, particularly in the east. It would appear…

Nepal: Scattering cremation ashes 13 day ceremony

The Nepali Congress has decided to scatter the ashes of their former Prime Minister in every one of the thirteen districts in a thirteen day ritual. Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, a Hindu, who became Nepal’s first Prime Minister died at the age 87 of after multiple organ failure. In Nepal that the scattering of ashes is fundamental part of…

Sir Edmund Hilary

Sir Edmund Hilary, the first westerner to climb mount Everest wanted to have half his ashes strewn on the top of the mountain. However the Buddhist lamas decided that having his cremated remains there might bring bad luck and create a precedent for similar ceremonies. So it was decided that the ashes should be interned…