Views on death and the afterlife vary from person to person and culture to culture. This course gives US Air Force cadets a broad perspective on mortality and its effects on people and society.
Members of the British royal family follow behind the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II as it is carried out of Westminster Abbey after her state funeral.
Gareth Cattermole/Pool Photo via AP
As late as 1970, only about 5% of Americans chose to be cremated. In 2020, more than 56% Americans opted for it.
An art installation by Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg in remembrance of Americans who have died of COVID-19, near the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.
AP Photo/Brynn Anderson
In trying to present violent events in ‘neutral’ language, media reports may be ignoring power imbalances when it comes to Israeli police or military violence against Palestinian civilians.
A man identified only as Viktor shows his neighbor’s grave in Bucha, Ukraine. It was too dangerous to go to the cemetery.
Jana Cavojska/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Green burial is not a new concept, but it is gaining interest among consumers, and some religious groups are leading the way. A theologian explains what’s involved and who natural burials appeal to.
The negative impact of the pandemic on grief has raised concerns. Our study shows that 15 per cent of people dealing with grief are at risk of what’s known as complicated grief.
Many of the tombs in Japan are elaborately decorated. Nearby visitors can buy flowers, buckets. brooms and other gardening tools to tidy up the graves.
John S Lander/LightRocket via Getty Images
In a Japanese tree burial, cremated remains are placed in the ground and a tree is planted over the ashes to mark the gravesite. Environmental responsibility is part of Buddhism.
Mass cremations in the city of Bengaluru, India, due to the large number of COVID-19 deaths.
Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images)
As cremation grounds struggle to keep up with the long line of people dying from COVID-19, age-old customs are being pushed aside.
A funeral director calls relatives of a COVID-19 victim for a virtual viewing before cremation on May 22, 2020 in New York City.
Misha Friedman/Getty Images
Religious scholars and faith leaders reflect on the death rites cultures have developed to honor the deceased, comfort the living and share the burden of mourning.
A lone visitor reads names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall during the coronavirus outbreak.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Shad Thielman, California State University San Marcos
Unlike those who died during the Vietnam War, those who perish during the current pandemic are unlikely to receive a national memorial. Perhaps they should.
The objects we gather around us - from op shops, from roadsides, from the intimate spaces of lost loved ones - are far from inanimate. They carry wisdom, comfort and guidance.
A piper plays ‘Amazing Grace’ as local residents look on during a local vigil in Wentworth, N.S., after the worst mass shooting in Canada.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Liam Hennessey
Virtual music vigils after the Nova Scotia shootings draw on a long tradition of Atlantic Canadian disaster songs and ‘broadside ballads’ to mourn in a time of social distancing.
Workers wearing personal protective equipment bury bodies in a trench on Hart Island in New York.
John Minchillo/AP Photo
From burial sites targeted by grave robbers to disposing of ashes at sea, the job of disposing of the unclaimed dead has a rich history. Sadly, it still goes on today and is on the rise.
My research as a professor of death studies shows how facing up to our own mortality can offer the opportunity to rediscover some positive truths about life.