Shu wen spent over thirty years in tibet, h xinran was a journalist who had. Since then she has written a regular column for the guardian. Stumbling upon ritual of feeding the dead to vulture angels. A sky burial site in yerpa valley, tibet cc bysa 3. Xinran was born in beijing in 1958 and was a successful journalist and radio presenter in china. Colourful tibetan prayer flags may be used to mark the site of a sky burial, as well as other important places. From a to z, the penguin drop caps series collects 26 unique hardcoversfeaturing cover art by jessica hische it all begins with a letter. Sky burial is the true story of a chinese womans 30year search through tibet for news of her lost, presumed dead, husband. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading sky burial.
Sky burial xinran was born in beijing in 1958 and was a successful journalist and radio presenter in china. In tibetan buddhism, sky burial is believed to represent their wishes to go to heaven. An epic love story of tibet is a story of heroism that transcends the centuries, a tale to be passed along from one generation to another of one. The origin of sky burial remains largely hidden in tibetan mystery. It is the most widespread way for commoners to deal with the dead in tibet. Tibetan sky burials is a traditional custom in tibetan buddhism to farewell their dead, and these days outsiders are mostly forbidden from witnessing them. The chinese authorities, themselves outsiders to many of tibets customs and traditions, have a checkered history with respect to sky burial. Xinran made the trip and met the woman, called shu wen, who recounted the story of her thirtyyear odyssey in the vast landscape of tibet. A vulture at a sky burial in 20 for a tibetan monk photograph by chensiyuan, via wikimedia sky burial isnt a burial at all, of anything. It is practiced in the region of tibet and the chinese provinces and.
An epic love story of tibet a book of fiction, but xinran indicates in the preface that the novel was based on her conversations with this old chinese woman. Many regions had the practice outlawed such as in communist times when the chinese and mongolian governments. However, it is not considered suitable for children who are less than 18, pregnant women, or those who have died of infectious disease or accident. Written with lyrical eloquence, sky burial is many things at oncea love story, a mystery and a tale of adventure. The ceremonies have recently begun to attract tourists, who take photographs and videos of these burials. He had been posted to tibet as part of the ongoing pacification program following the. Sky burial, therefore, is the last act of merit feeding the body to the birds, eliminating what is no longer serving you. As a young girl in china xinran heard a rumour about a soldier in tibet who had been brutally fed to the vultures in a ritual known as a. She meets travellers who tell stories of a stranger given a tibetan sky. In sky burial, xinran has recreated shu wens journey, painting an extraordinary portrait of a.
An epic love story of tibet is a 2005 nonfiction book by britishchinese author and journalist xue xinran who writes under the name xinran. Epic, yes, even this books the size of a prayer missal with large print over barely 200 pages. In this excerpt from vultures of tibet, director russell o. Fall in love with penguin drop caps, a new series of twentysix collectible and hardcover editions, each with a type cover showcasing a gorgeously illustrated letter of the alphabet. As a young girl in china xinran heard a rumour about a soldier in tibet who had been brutally fed to the vultures in a ritual known as a sky burial. Xinrans extraordinary second book takes the reader right to the hidden. It was 1994 when xinran, a journalist and the internationally acclaimed author of the good women of china, received a telephone call asking her to travel four hours to meet a woman who had just crossed the border from tibet into china. Shu wen and her husband had been married for only a few months in the 1950s when he joined the chinese army and was sent to tibet for the purpose of. Sky burial is a heartfelt journey into tibet that is in some ways more soulful than an actual journey there speaking as someone who has been. The book involves a chinese woman, shu wen, retelling her life in tibet to xinran in a tea shop in suzhou. In addition to the vultureshooting incident we mentioned earlier, the chinese banned most religious practices in tibet following its absorption into the peoples republic of china in 1951. Different people have a different view of this practice. The book presents itself as the memoir of shu wen, told to xinran during the course of a twoday interview. Book description vintage publishing, united kingdom, 2005.
Towards modern times, however, sky burials are dropping in number. Tibetan sky burial and other funarel practices wonders. For water burial, the body is placed in a river or lake, with the intention that fish and other creatures will eat it. It is a specific type of the general practice of excarnation. Please be aware that this discussion guide may contain spoilers. As my sympathies lie not with the prc, however, i feared sentimentality in what the cover subtitles an epic love story of tibet. The process of the tibetan sky burial begins with a persons death. Inspired by a brief 1994 interview with an aged chinese woman named shu wen, beijingborn, londonbased journalist xinran the good. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus.
Yet once when you understand the background propose of this burial practice, you will surely have a better understanding of our way of life and our belief systems. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. An epic love story of tibet a deeply affecting tale about a womans thirtyyear search for her husband in the isolated, hauntingly beautiful land of tibet. In 1997 she moved to london, where she began work on her seminal book about chinese womens lives, the good women of china. Shu wen spent over thirty years in tibet, h xinran was a journalist who had a radio program about the lives of chinese women. Sky burial is simply the disposal of a corpse to be devoured by vultures. Sky burial by xinran, jessica hische, hardcover barnes. In 1997 she moved to london, where she began work on her seminal book about chinese womens lives, the good women of china, which became an international bestseller. In this article, you will find detailed information about the sky burial, and other funeral practices in tibet.
Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Sky burial is the usual means for disposing of the corpses of commoners. The custom and tradition of tibet and culture has been vividly featured in this book and also the nomad life in the tibet and the religious beliefs, etc. Sky burial xinran xue, author, xinran xinran, author, trans. Tibetan sky burial ritual is one of the unique cultures we have developed over the centuries. She is author of the good women of china, a seminal book about the lives of chinese women, and sky burial. Tibetan sky burial tibetan culture i tibet travel and.
Several decades later xinran met shu wan, a chinese woman who had spent years searching for her missing husband who had been serving as a doctor in tibet. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. An epic love story of tibet kindle edition by xinran. The tradition, a sustainable burial method, symbolizes the impermanence of life for buddhists.
How does this differ from the traditional western burial methods. At the same time, the practice poses no harm to the environment. An epic love story of tibet is a story of heroism that transcends the centuries, a tale to be passed along from one generation to another of one womans devotion to her husband. Sky burial is a ritual that has great religious meaning. Sky burial paints a unique portrait of a woman and a land, both at the mercy. Sky burial, tibetan religious ritual, funeral party. In 1958, shu wen was newly married to an army doctor named kejun. In sky burial, xinran has recreated shu wens journey, painting an extraordinary portrait of a woman and a land, each at the mercy of fate and politics. Although the outcome is clear from both the title, and early indications. Sky burial by xinran book cover, description, publication history. A young chinese wife, shu wen, a physician, joins the army in search of her husband, kejun, is reportedly killed in tibet. Based on a true story, xinrans extraordinary second book takes the reader right.
Written with lyrical eloquence, sky burial is many things at oncea love story, a mystery. Similarly, sky burial involves leaving the body to be eaten by birds of prey, most commonly vultures. An epic love story of tibet by xue, xinran author paperback on 08. Sky burial is a 2004 book by xue xinran, her second. Xinran is working as a radio journalist on a womens programme when a listener calls in to tell her about shuwen.