The
mini-docu isn´t about this, however, but about a somewhat more piquant problem.
In northern Sichuan, Tibetan Buddhists still practice the ancient custom of “sky-burial”,
during which a dead person´s body is exposed at a charnel ground to be literally
eaten by vultures. Often, the corpse is “prepared” so the vultures can eat it. The
birds are seen as a kind of compassionate spirit-beings helping the soul of the
deceased to reach the afterlife.
The problem
is that Chinese tourists often travel to the region to see the sky-burials and take
photos of the custom (which they clearly see as pretty bizarre) without
permission from the Tibetans. Local Chinese authorities gladly take bribes to bus
the tourists to the charnel ground. Some of the tourists seem to enjoy their
exotic little trip and laugh rather profusely, while others vomit just as much!
The Tibetans obviously see the entire situation as disrespectful and as another
example of Han insensitivity to their native culture…
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