The practice of confining remains in dark concrete holes rather than returning them to the earth is one problem with modern graves. Modern graves are designed to ensure that they never return to the earth. Placing a ceramic urn containing ashes in a concrete ossuary (columbarium) means that the bones retain their shape even after 100 years. When bodies are interred, not only the body but also the bones often return to the earth, demonstrating that bones, too, are meant to return to the earth.
Today, it's common to want to keep the remains of a loved one forever in a beautiful urn and a sturdy, beautiful grave. However, perhaps the very idea of preserving remains forever is flawed. No matter how long graves and remains remain, in a declining population, it's not uncommon for surviving family members or successors to disappear.
Graves were originally intended as places to return the deceased to the earth, not as storage facilities for remains. It could be said that the practice of having a concrete bottom for a grave is no longer in keeping with the times. Perhaps it's time to realize the contradiction of continuing to pay management fees forever in order to keep remains that will never return to the earth. Those who realized this early on are now increasingly closing their graves. With burial, remains can remain even after 100 years, but if the ashes are scattered in nature, they will definitely return to the earth in 10 years. In nature, the remains are affected by wind and rain, and as fallen leaves and dead branches accumulate, insects and microorganisms decompose them, returning them to the earth. This may be the true way to mourn the deceased.
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