TRADITION AT ITS FINEST

On the east bank of the Nahal Beit Arif – near the city of Shoham, Israel – sits the Tinshemet Cave, or Mugharet al Watwat, ‘cave of the bat.’ Within – approximately 80,000 to 130,000 years ago – at least five remains of Neanderthals and Homo sapiens were interred. Individuals were buried in fetal or sleeping positions, and their graves were adorned with large fragments of red, orange, brown, yellow, and purple ochre. Among the most ancient sites of formal inhumation, Tinshemet Cave provides evidence of the earliest form of human disposition: natural burial.

In its most familiar definition, a natural burial is an interment method that returns an individual to the earth. This process is characterized by the use of: 

• Biodegradable Burial Wraps/Vessels 
• Hand-Dug, Vaultless Graves 
• Natural Grave Markers
• Eco-Friendly Body Care and Cooling

The significance of this process varies, but from an environmental perspective, a natural burial minimizes the ecological costs associated with “traditional” burials: 

• Chemical Embalming 
• Decorative Caskets
• Vaults/Grave Liners
• Polished Monuments Set in Concrete

Each year, “traditional” burials bury an average of 1.6 million tons of reinforced concrete, 90,000 tons of steel, 800,000 gallons of embalming fluids, and 20 million board-feet of oak, maple, and cherry in American soils. According to Mark Harris, author of Grave Matters, a typical 10-acre burial ground contains 900+ tons of casket steel, 20,000 tons of concrete, and the equivalent of 40 homes worth of coffin wood. These impacts are eliminated by natural burial techniques.

Intertwined with these benefits are the colorful strands of personal identity. The way in which a natural burial unfolds varies, manifesting differently across cultures and peoples. A natural burial is at once a nonlinear and interconnected process; families are both the authors and the narrators, invited to take care of their loved ones in death. Family participation in the form of carrying, lowering, and shoveling dirt are all integral parts of a natural burial service.

With the ancient fibers of humanity, natural burial stitches life and death as one to honor the individual, the planet, and their intrinsic connection. Natural burial represents tradition at its finest: the way it was, the way it is, and the way it always will be meant to be.