Resting in Peace in Korea

Notice anything in the picture up there? If you look closely behind the scraggly branches, you'll see a couple of grass-covered mounds. They're actually graves and if you still look closer, you'd see the flowers lovingly left behind by the family. Sure, there are cemeteries here in Korea, there's actually one about 30 minutes away from where I am (Icheon National Memorial Cemetery. But the more popular option is to inter one's dearly departed loved one by the side of a hill or mountain.

My Korean friends say that it's a bit expensive, buying up that wee parcel of land by the side of a hill or mountain. Usually, they employ a shaman or a Feng Sui expert to divine which side of the mountain the dead should be buried. This is due to the belief that the dearly departed should be happy in the afterlife and ensuring that would mean they have to be buried in a lucky location, facing a specific direction. It's all about pleasing those who have gone before us.

Although more and more Koreans are opting to be cremated (still an expensive option, costing about $10,000 for everything), majority still chose the burial by the mountainside. With hiking up the hills and mountains of Korea a popular pasttime here, it is not unusual for hikers to encounter a forgotten grave or two.

My mother, who visited here several years ago, loves it. She looks at the graves and find it a peaceful and natural place for them to be in. Most of my Korean friend on the other hand look at them fearfuly, half-expecting a ghost to pop up anytime soon. Me? I agree with my mom.