(The Conversation) As the global population continues to grow, space for putting the dead to rest is at a premium. In the U.S., some of the biggest cities are already short on burial land, and so are many other nations around the world.
At the same time, many nations are transforming funerary rituals, changing the way cemeteries operate and even destroying historic cemeteries to reclaim land for the living. In Singapore, for example, the government has forcibly demolished family tombs in favor of columbariums, structures that can hold the urns of the cremated. Grave spaces in the city-state can be used only for a term of 15 years, after which the remains are cremated and the space is used for another burial.
Abstract
This article considers the unique case of the birds in Amitābha’s Pure Land, Sukhāvatī. Pure Land scriptures highlight the two main roles of the birds: their ornamental beauty and their amplification of the Dharma through their birdsong. In addition to the scriptures, the birds appear in Chinese commentarial and liturgical literature and popular tales. Although scriptures indicate that the birds are Amitābha’s skillful creations, they provided a familiar connection in this life to the Pure Land for those who aspired to be reborn there. This allowed for Pure Land practitioners to reimagine their spaces to gain a momentary experience of the Pure Land on earth.
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Kung Fu Nuns serving people in Himalayas amid pandemic
Wed, May 19 2021 10:21 IST |
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Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Shimla: Serving people in Himalayas amidst pandemic. Image Source: IANS News
Manali, May 19 : The maroon-robed Buddhist nuns of the 1,000-year-old Drukpa lineage are back in action this time amid the Covid-19 pandemic with help from their family and friends back to their hometowns.