Chuck Bao
3/27/2006, 08:00 AM
I attended a funeral service of my best friend on Saturday. It was a Buddhist service and a bit different from the Oklahoma variety.
The casket arrived at the crematorium in the back of a pickup truck. The procession led by monks and followed by friends and family circled the crematorium three times.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/threetimesaroundthecrematoriumresized.jpg
After hauling the casket up the stairs to the crematorium, they strung a cord from the casket into a nearby pavilion for the eulogy, merit-making and final blessings.
I was amazed that almost everyone knew the Pali chants by heart. I've never seen that. Instead of having 10 monks chanting in unison, it was multiplied 10 times with everyone chanting in near perfect pitch. It made my hair stand up, I guess, like 100 people singing Amazing Grace a cappella would.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/prayersresized.jpg
Meanwhile, a few men were chopping coconuts near the crematorium. Coconut juice is poured over the body prior to the cremation. I think that helps improve the smell.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/choppingcoconutsresized.jpg
Later they passed out paper flowers and incense. People filed by one-by-one and put the paper flowers inside the casket. Buddhists use the funeral rite as an important lesson that death is part of the cycle of life and shouldn’t be feared.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/paperflowers26incenseresized.jpg
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/placingpaperflowersandincenseinsidecasketresized.j pg
I was given a plastic jug of coconut juice to pour on the body. As I was pouring the last of it on his head, I couldn't stand that, so I wipped it off his brow and forehead.
As they pushed the casket inside the crematorium, closed the door and lit the fire, they let off fireworks and threw candy out into the crowd. The crowd was calling for the candy, just as they starting throwing it, someone set off the biggest, loudest firecracker that was somehow set off down a guide wire over the crowd. Everyone ducked and ran and then they realized that they had been tricked and started laughing and picking up candy again.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/fireworksandthrowingcandyresized.jpg
Then everyone left except for a few of us.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/cremation2resized.jpg
The close friends and family had one more thing to do - burn his clothes and some of his favorite personal belongings just behind the crematorium.
Honestly, I don't know why they did this. I guess it was to give him something to wear or his favorite things in the afterlife.
I brought an OU baseball cap to burn. He always loved wearing my OU caps. He wasn’t really an OU fan and I think he just liked the crimson color.
We poured coconut juice on the pile and set it on fire. We had to keep raking it for an hour or so, so it would keep burning. With just the few of us staying and saying goodbye, I felt release and I’m thankful for that.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/burningclothesresized.jpg
The casket arrived at the crematorium in the back of a pickup truck. The procession led by monks and followed by friends and family circled the crematorium three times.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/threetimesaroundthecrematoriumresized.jpg
After hauling the casket up the stairs to the crematorium, they strung a cord from the casket into a nearby pavilion for the eulogy, merit-making and final blessings.
I was amazed that almost everyone knew the Pali chants by heart. I've never seen that. Instead of having 10 monks chanting in unison, it was multiplied 10 times with everyone chanting in near perfect pitch. It made my hair stand up, I guess, like 100 people singing Amazing Grace a cappella would.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/prayersresized.jpg
Meanwhile, a few men were chopping coconuts near the crematorium. Coconut juice is poured over the body prior to the cremation. I think that helps improve the smell.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/choppingcoconutsresized.jpg
Later they passed out paper flowers and incense. People filed by one-by-one and put the paper flowers inside the casket. Buddhists use the funeral rite as an important lesson that death is part of the cycle of life and shouldn’t be feared.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/paperflowers26incenseresized.jpg
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/placingpaperflowersandincenseinsidecasketresized.j pg
I was given a plastic jug of coconut juice to pour on the body. As I was pouring the last of it on his head, I couldn't stand that, so I wipped it off his brow and forehead.
As they pushed the casket inside the crematorium, closed the door and lit the fire, they let off fireworks and threw candy out into the crowd. The crowd was calling for the candy, just as they starting throwing it, someone set off the biggest, loudest firecracker that was somehow set off down a guide wire over the crowd. Everyone ducked and ran and then they realized that they had been tricked and started laughing and picking up candy again.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/fireworksandthrowingcandyresized.jpg
Then everyone left except for a few of us.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/cremation2resized.jpg
The close friends and family had one more thing to do - burn his clothes and some of his favorite personal belongings just behind the crematorium.
Honestly, I don't know why they did this. I guess it was to give him something to wear or his favorite things in the afterlife.
I brought an OU baseball cap to burn. He always loved wearing my OU caps. He wasn’t really an OU fan and I think he just liked the crimson color.
We poured coconut juice on the pile and set it on fire. We had to keep raking it for an hour or so, so it would keep burning. With just the few of us staying and saying goodbye, I felt release and I’m thankful for that.
http://img5.ranchoweb.com/images/kanunu/burningclothesresized.jpg