According to Buddhism, the soul is not permanent, but it is a continuing stream of consciousness (santāna) according to karma. Common across Buddhist cultures, cremation symbolizes impermanence and detachment from the body. Cremation is a favored tradition which honors the dead and helps consciousness towards rebirth (Samsara) through karma. Practices like chanting and almsgiving are directed to aiding the transition toward nirvana.
Traditional Judaism regards cremation as a violation of Jewish law and values. Traditional burial practices honor the body with kavod ha’met (honoring the dead) as God’s creation. However, its primarily Orthodox and most Conservative Jewish denominations prohibit cremation, whereas Reform positions have varied from permissive to “discouraging but permitted.”
Cremation prohibition in Judaism is also reinforced, especially post-Holocaust, as millions of Jews were burned in a Nazi crematorium. Judaism’s belief system surrounding burial rituals states that the soul (neshama) is seen as coming from God therefore, it must
