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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Yaarel" data-source="post: 8731486" data-attributes="member: 58172">In animistic cultures, the dead never leave the world. There is no where else to go. Instead, the dead shapechange into new ways of existing physically in this world. Their bodies become corpses, their breaths become winds.  Earth and sky. Each aspect might retain the consciousness and the memory of the former life as a human.As corpses normally remain still, the corpse aspect of a person tends to want to rest and to be part of the earth. In the Norse view, humanity (mennir) is one of the kinds of nature beings (vættir) − one of the features of nature. At death, one ceases to be this kind of nature being, and now becomes a different kind of nature being − a different feature of nature − namely one of the corpses (nár). Normally, a corpse remains still, resting. The corpse can become "undead" in various ways, being still a corpse, but able to project ones mindful influences in the same way that any of the other nature beings can. In one account, a human steps into a burial (into a kind of large extradimensional demiplane) where the corpse, the ship, and all the persons buried with it, appear alive and well, and in this story hostile against this human that wishes to steal its valuables. The grave itself is hel, the place where the corpse is, and where its memories and influences rest. To some degree, all of these nature beings that are corpses share a mindful affinity with each other. There is a kind of collective grave, a shared hel, but each corpse rests separately in ones own grave.Separately, the breaths become winds. A human "breathes ones last breath", and this conscious breath travels elsewhere. It might become the winds below the clouds, among the vanir nature beings, or the winds among the clouds, among the æsir nature beings. It is rare but known, the winds might become part of the sky above the clouds among the alfar.Different animistic cultures can have different burial customs. Each human demonstrates affinity with certain features of nature. Both the way a person lives, and the way a person dies, can determine how one exists after ceasing to be human. In some animistic cultures, there are many possibilities after humanity.Among Norse cultures, the texts preserve descriptions of many different ways of existing after humanity. Likewise, the archeological remains evidence many different burial customs: pits, mounds, boats, cremations, etcetera.Archeologists are still sorting out the various burial customs and their significance. This aspect of Nordic archeology is remarkably complex.A recent breakthru relates to those burials that include a horse. If the horse is whole, and meant for riding, it appears to assist the journeyer to ascend the rainbow bridge to dwell up high in the clouds among the æsir nature beings of the sky. However, if it is only part of a horse and meant for food, it relates to the nature beings of the winds below the clouds, the vanir. The horse meat relates to Freyr, whose winds neigh like horses. There seems to be a correlation between Freyr with horse meat burials, Njorðr with sailing ships or boatlike burial markings, and a mention that Freyja receives half of the warriors who die in battle. In other words, by means of the horse, the living family and friends want to assist the dead one to exist well and in comfort among the vanir or æsir, in the aspect of the breath among the winds of nature.The Norse bury their dead with material possessions, for the corpse to remain in comfort, and if wealthy to continue to enjoy the presence and memory of luxury. There are also "ritual killings", where objects are destroyed, so as to deter grave robbers, while the corpse continues to enjoy the presence and memories of these items. The significance of cremation remains uncertain. Perhaps, it relates to a ritual killing, where smoke of the body can ascend into to the winds and clouds, or perhaps it is to help the corpse to move on to other ways of existing.Norse texts mention many possibilities, besides hel, vanir, and æsir. There are accounts of reincarnation (relating to breath). Vǫluspá mentions resurrection after Ragnarǫk. Those who love wealth can spend their existence among the dvergar. Those who love to drink ale and party can spend their existence among the jǫtnar. Those who love to play table top games (!) can spend their existence with Baldr and Hǫðr in the new Ásgarðr that is on earth. Meanwhile, some humans survive Ragnarǫk among the alfar in the farthest reaches of the sky.</blockquote>

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