How the Occult Brought Cremation to America

[love_katz]

2. Most interesting.

Thanks for posting this, Icy Mist.

I became somewhat aware of the origins of funeral customs during high school, when one of my teachers, who is Lakota talked about how peculiar mainstream ideas are about burial, cremation, etc. in comparison to how his people view this subject.

I have also experienced some frustration when trying to perform pagan style honoring of my ancestors, most of whom were cremated rather than buried. The mausoleum is quite restrictive on what they allow and don't allow.

It is interesting that some people became quite upset when Henry Olcott tried to perform what was publicized as a 'pagan' cremation, to the point where they wanted to riot. Since some Christian religions seem to believe that they will be resurrected in the same bodies that they had during life, that is apparently why their religions demand burial rather than cremation.

Tyrs: I hope you get your choice, and get sent off in a replica of a Viking ship, when it is time for your to cross the Rainbow bridge. My Lakota friend said that under current burial laws, these things have to be done within about 24 hours of the persons death. Supposedly, this has to do with laws regarding the control of disease that date from the time of the Black Plague in Europe. I have also read that our culture's process of embalming can be dated all the way back to ancient Egypt, when the dead were embalmed so that they would have intact bodies to use in the afterlife. If that is the case, then all the shouting the fundy fanatics want to do against occult practices becomes rather humorous.