INCOHERENT BABBLE
Filipino death traditions. Many ethnic groups in the Philippines have unique funeral practices. The Benguet of Northwestern Philippines blindfold their dead and place them next to the main entrance of the house; their Tinguian neighbors dress bodies in their best clothes, sit them on a chair and place a lit cigarette in their lips. The Caviteño, who live near Manila, bury their dead in a hollowed-out tree trunk. When someone becomes ill, they select the tree where they will eventually be entombed. Meanwhile, the Apayo, who live in the north, bury their dead under the kitchen.
Sky burial in Mongolia and Tibet. Many Vajrayana Buddhists in Mongolia and Tibet believe in the transmigration of spirits after death — that the soul moves on, while the body becomes an empty vessel. To return it to the earth, the body is chopped into pieces and placed on a mountaintop, which exposes it to the elements — including vultures. It’s a practice that’s been done for thousands of years and, according to a recent report, about 80% of Tibetans still choose it.
Tibetan Rituals: Tibetan Buddhist death rituals follow the tradition of earning merit for the deceased but were also born out of practicality.
Sky Burial - A sky burial is the practice of leaving the body to be eaten by vultures or other animals. It is another way for the deceased to earn merit posthumously, as it is considered a final act of generosity to the animals. The sky burial also developed for practical reasons. The scarcity of firewood in Tibet made burning the corpse difficult, and the ground is not always suitable for burial.
Sati: Though now (mercifully) banned in India, Sati was a funerary practice in which recently widowed women immolated themselves on their husband's funeral pyre. The custom was seen as a voluntary act, but there were many instances in which women were forced to commit Sati — sometimes even dragged against their will to the fire. No one is certain how the ritual got started, but one suggestion is that it was introduced to prevent wives from killing their wealthy husbands (typically with poison) and marry their real lovers. Another possibility is that it was seen as a way for a husband and wife to enter into the afterlife together so that they could thwart opportunistic female angels. Interestingly, India was not the first and only culture to adopt the tradition. Other ancient societies that practiced something similar to Sati included the Egyptians, Greeks, Goths, and Scythians.
Ritual Finger Amputation: As if the death of a loved one wasn't traumatic enough, the Dani people of West Papua, New Guinea also had to cut off their own fingers. This seemingly severe and incomprehensible ritual applied to any woman related to the deceased, as well as any children. The practice was done to both gratify and drive away the spirits, while also providing a way to use physical pain as an expression of sorrow and suffering. To perform the amputation, fingers were tied tightly with string and then cut off with an axe. The leftover piece was then dried and burned to ashes or stored in a special place. The ritual is now banned in New Guinea, but (as this image shows) the effects of the practice can still be seen in some of the older members of the community.
How the inspiration will materialise into a performance piece:
- Vulture costume eats something that can’t disappear just changes, food turns to shit, drugs turn to highs
- "Addicts will always be addicts"
- Candles lit in background like a seance, cult like
- "Removing the visual displays of life and letting the energy speak for itself"
- “At the deepest level of Being, you are one with all that is”
- Record sound of vultures, where? Sound of a unit? Sound of venue toilets?
- Endocannibalism
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