A Buddhist funeral contains elaborate last rites performed according to sacred rituals and traditions. Devout Buddhists believe that the soul is given freedom from the worldly cycle of life and death from the deceased\’s mortal body during the funeral ceremonies and is able to reach a new level and move towards a greater existence.
In a typical Buddhist funeral, the deceased\’s body is cremated and monks in the presence of family members carry out the last rites. The underlying positive energies are freed from the soul by the chanting of appropriate sutras by monks who read from the holy scriptures. To prevent any decomposition in case of a late cremation, the deceased\’s body is prepared cautiously while the religious chanting is being performed. Once the body is washed, it is put along with candles, bouquets and incense in a coffin along with a photograph of the deceased person.
When the final rituals are deferred to allow far away relatives to arrive for the last glimpse of the deceased, monks visit the house daily to read and recite from the Buddhist religious scripture Abhidharma.
On funeral day, Buddhist monks go through the final rites and the head monk expresses his condolences to the family and utters words of encouragement to them along with tribute to the deceased person recounting his life. During the final religious chanting and ceremony, the coffin is wrapped in white cloth and a ritual of conveying blessings and good energies to the deceased\’s soul, referred to as \’Pansakula\’ is carried out.
Prior to the cremation, a family member or closest kin has to speak a word or two about the deceased. The Buddhist funeral ceremonies end with a special meal for the visitors immediately after the funeral.
Some differences in the specific rituals may be found in various cultures, but these are the important ceremonies followed during a Buddhist funeral in many countries like China, Thailand, and Tibet by the followers of the faith.
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