Beliefs About Death

Buddhists believe in reincarnation, that they are reborn when they die - depending on their karma (the belief that all actions have either a good or bad effect and will affect your next life). Breaking free of the cycle of reincarnation is called Nirvana — the state of perfect peace and happiness, reached by people that have realized the true meaning of life and gained enlightenment. The Buddha taught that everything changes, nothing lasts forever and that dying is part of the natural process of change.

Visitation

The night before the funeral a wake is held at a temple or mortuary lasting from 1 —3 days (in Japan it would be held at the deceased person's home). Relatives and friends spend this time praying for the repose of the departed. The body is laid out with its head to the north and an alter, "butsudan', is set up with fresh flowers, fruits, a bowl of water, incense and a candle. A Buddhist priest will officiate at the service; and the deceased is given a posthumous name, which is written on a wooden tablet. Visitors greet the family, offer their condolences, and then go to the casket and bow. They may then either stay and sit for a while or leave, according to personal preference.

A Buddhist Funeral

Monks attend the funeral to chant prayers and verses from the sacred texts. Everyone repeats his or her commitment to the Three Jewels of Buddhism. These are the Buddha, the dharma (his teaching) and the sangha (the Buddhist community). They also recite the Five Precepts, or Promises, - Not to harm living things, not to steal, have affairs, tell lies or take drugs or alcohol.

The body is taken in the hearse and is brought to the crematorium. Buddhists disapprove of any disposal method other than cremation. Traditionally, as is the present case in Japan, friends and relatives will gather the bone fragments with chopsticks and put them in an urn that is later to be buried in a cemetery. Afterward they will have a refreshment feast, where food and drink is offered to everyone.

Mourning

It is believed that by the forty-ninth day after death, the karma of the deceased takes a certain form. During these 49 days the family observes a mourning period and they refrain from any merry-making. A memorial service is held on the 49th day, the one-hundredth day, the first, third, seventh, and twenty-third year anniversaries and ending on the thirty-third year - at which time it is believed that the soul has been assimilated into the collective ancestral soul.

References:
(Matsunami, Kodo, International Handbook of Funeral Practices. Greenwood Press, 1998) (Ganeri, Anita, Journey's End - Death and Mourning, Peter Bedrick Books. New York 1998)