A Comparative Analysis of Symbolism Used in the Death Rituals of the Rural Greeks & Balinese to My Own Experiences with Death Ritual Symbols

In all areas of life there are symbols. As human beings, it is in our nature to define things, name things, and place meaning to things. At some point in time, human beings saw that order, not just of the natural world, but man made order was good for everyone. However, there are things that human beings could not put into that order. When something living and breathing is here one day and gone the …

…in the physical world. Through this the Balinese can be rest assured that their relatives will not be demons. The Greeks can come to see the full circle of an individual's life and death. And in my own family, we can remember the things about our family as they were in life and not how they were in death. Symbols become the tangible meaning we cling to, so that death does not seem so mysterious.