Finals week felt like a death ritual Tibetan Buddhists and Varanasi Hindus tend to share similar death rituals. Especially in the aspect where there is a ritual for death, suggesting that death is a process and not a moment for both faiths. While there are strong similarities between the two practices and views on death, there are also some key differences that I believe truly reflect the values ​​of each religion. I will compare and contrast Tibetan sky burial to the cremation of Hindu bodies on the banks of the Ganges. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The first clear comparison is the fact that both Buddhists and Hindus have specific characteristics that constitute a good death, but the specifics of those characteristics differ. For Hindus some characteristics of a good death include being clean of all bodily secretions, which means practicing the aesthetics of starvation. Furthermore, since every life is projected astrologically, this means that dying a good death does not mean dying prematurely. Premature death takes away the right to a funeral rite and that person cannot be cremated along the Ganges. Another inherent feature of a good death would be to die in Varanasi, a place that automatically increases any good karma and the chance of attaining moksha. On the other hand, for those of the Buddhist faith, there are not many distinctive factors that influence a good death, it is more simply about being spiritually prepared for it. Some Tibetans even practice their own death in cemeteries. The key is to be completely detached from worldly things like the body so that with this mindset of impermanence it is easier to achieve enlightenment after death. Both religions also have distinct characteristics that constitute a bad death. For Hindus, as I said before, dying a bad death would mean dying prematurely or by a tragic accident. This includes death from chickenpox, leprosy, snakebite, or the death of any person under the age of 5. These are all deaths caused by chance and therefore do not allow someone to properly fulfill their dharma. These individuals, instead of being cremated, will simply be thrown directly into the Ganges River. Likewise, those who die an afflicted death in the Buddhist tradition will not be subjected to their death rituals, but unlike Hindus they also do not include criminals for reasons of karmic value. Tibetan Buddhism excludes afflicted individuals and criminals by burying them in the ground, as Thubron reminds us, to “prevent their reincarnation and eliminate their species forever” (TMT 151). Some more obvious differences lie in the practices themselves. For Hindus, death is a process that begins long before clinical death. Those who are about 2 weeks away from death can be admitted to Kashi Labh Mukti Bhavan, a hospice center that allows people to die peacefully without conventional medicine. As cited in ER n. 14 City of Death and Liberation, “patients have come not to heal, but to die in an atmosphere where their last thoughts can be directed towards God” (ER n. 14 130-131). Surrounded by family and the chanting of mantras, the individual is driven to death by starvation. Immediately before death a mantra is whispered in the ear of the dying person by a guru who has meditated on the wisdom needed to guide the deceased soul towards a better rebirth or moksha, but in Varanasi the mantra is said to be whispered by Shiva himself. Liberation is most likely when..