question: How do highly dense populations such as China or India deal with their dead when there is little land left?
comment: Obviously different cultures have different traditions, but the typical grave is 3ft x 8ft. There have been about 108 billion people that have ever existed on the planet. That means all the dead people throughout all of history could be buried in the area of about: 2.6 trillion square ft = 92,975 square miles = 240,805 square km That's about the size of Michigan or Portugal. There's plenty of space on Earth for the dead. Once someone has been dead for hundreds or thousands of years, you can just reuse the space in most cases. It's customary for Indians of the Hindu religion to cremate the dead, and their ashes are commonly washed away in a river.
passages: At the end of the nineteenth century, Richard Edward Dennett, an English merchant who lived and traded in Vili country note "Fiote, once they have buried a parent, either destroy completely the house of the deceased, or dismantle it to sell the materials to another family ". " The cassava plants or other fruit trees like orange, lemon and mango are planted instead to avoid anyone to settle there. However, things have changed today. Indeed, the death of a loved one always causes abandonment of the home plot. However, it is only rarely destroyed. This allows the family of the deceased to continue to operate, at least temporarily, the food-producting cultures and fruits that are still there, however without to maintain them.
   It is estimated that around 1000 km² of unexploited land is inside sacred groves. Some of the more famous groves are the "kavu"s of Kerala, which are located in the Western Ghats and have enormous biodiversity; and the "law kyntang"s of Meghalaya – sacred groves associated with every village (two large groves being in Mawphlang and Mausmai) to appease the forest spirit.
   It has often been thought that the slash-burn plots are abandoned after one or two years because of un productive soil, but this is a common misconception. The Kayapớ revisit abandoned fields because plants can offer direct and indirect benefits. One direct benefit would be the ability to eat that which has been produced and an indirect benefit would be that open fields allow attract game for hunting and can produce long after they have been tended (Posey 2002).
   Section::::Traditional rites and rituals.:Funeral.
  
  Upon the death of a Mru individual, their body is put in a coffin made of split colored bamboos and in some cases rugs and blankets. The body is then cremated and the remaining unburnt pieces of bones are collected; after being stored in the village for 2-3 months they are stored in a small hut constructed above the location at which the body was cremated.
  
  In the case of death by contagious disease (especially small-pox and cholera) the deceased individual is buried immediately and no hut is constructed
  
  Section::::Marriage law.
   Section::::Civilization.:Religion and disposal of the dead.
   Section::::Locations.
  
  Section::::Locations.:Where to bury.
  
  Apart from sanitary and other practical considerations, the site of burial can be determined by religious and socio-cultural considerations.
  
  Thus in some traditions, especially with an animistic logic, the remains of the dead are "banished" for fear their spirits would harm the living if too close; others keep remains close to help surviving generations.
   Section::::Development.
   In burials, the deceased is placed directly in the earth. At the bottom of a six or seven foot hole, a vertical tomb extends to the west. The body is seated inside this tomb with some belongings. The tomb is filled with salt and fenced with bamboo that keeps soil from penetrating. Then the main hole is filled in with mud. A tulsi-tree is planted on the surface of the tomb, above the body's head. Than a small bamboo hut is built on the surface of the tomb. For the next three, five, or seven days, family members, relatives, and others perform a death ritual. The bereaved repeat this death ritual at the end of the year—or, if someone wishes, at the end of every year.
   It is estimated that around 1000 km² of unexploited land is inside sacred groves. Some of the more famous groves are the "kavu"s of Kerala, which are located in the Western Ghats and have enormous biodiversity; and the "law kyntang"s of Meghalaya – sacred groves associated with every village (two large groves being in Mawphlang and Mausmai) to appease the forest spirit.
   Section::::Inspiration.
  
  In a 1960 letter Tolkien said that "the Dead Marshes and the approaches to the Morannon owe something to Northern France after the Battle of the Somme.
  
  Section::::Portrayal in adaptations.
  
  Peter Jackson's flying Nazgûl background shots were filmed above the Kepler Mire, a massive string bog between the towns of Manapouri and Te Anau in the Southland Region of New Zealand. It can be viewed on the Mt York Road some 2 km east of the Highway 95 turn off.
  
  The close-up shots were filmed on the Weta Digital Wet-Set at Lower Hutt, NZ.
   In shifting agriculture, after two or three years of producing vegetable and grain crops on cleared land, the migrants abandon it for another plot. Land is often cleared by slash-and-burn methods—trees, bushes and forests are cleared by slashing, and the remaining vegetation is burnt. The ashes add potash to the soil. Then the seeds are sown after the rains.
  
  Section::::Political ecology.
   Sarpa Kavus even help in soil and water conservation besides preserving its rich biological wealth. The ponds and streams adjoining the groves are perennial water sources. These are the last resorts to many of the animals and birds for their water requirements, especially during summer. Sacred groves also enrich the soil through its rich litter composition. The nutrients generated thus are not only recycled within the sacred grove ecosystem but also find their way into the adjoining agroeco systems.
  
  Section::::Sacred Groves.
  
  A Kavu is a South Indian version of an Indian sacred grove. 
   Fruits and vegetables grown in garden plots that have been cleared from the jungle or forest provide the main source of food in a horticultural society. These societies have a level of technology and complexity similar to pastoral societies. Some horticultural groups use the slash-and-burn method to raise crops. The wild vegetation is cut and burned, and ashes are used as fertilizers. Horticulturists use human labor and simple tools to cultivate the land for one or more seasons. When the land becomes barren, horticulturists clear a new plot and leave the old plot to revert to its natural state. They may return to the original land several years later and begin the process again. By rotating their garden plots, horticulturists can stay in one area for a fairly long period of time. This allows them to build semipermanent or permanent villages. The size of a village's population depends on the amount of land available for farming; thus villages can range from as few as 30 people to as many as 2000.
   Seemingly treeless fields may contain seeds and living tree stumps and roots which have the ability to sprout new stems and regenerate trees. Even this 'bare' millet field in West Africa contains hundreds of living stumps per hectare which are buried beneath the surface like an underground forest.
  
  Section::::Benefits.
   Death: When a person dies, couriers travel throughout the hamlets, chanting the name of the dead. The relatives and the neighbors sprinkle coriander mixed with water on the dead body and a coin is pasted on the forehead. The dead body is completely covered with a white cloth and placed in a bamboo cot. The people who come for the burial service resolve any problems they had with the dead person and thus he is expected to be completely freed for his eternal journey.
   These rapid changes have had major effects on the ecology and the livelihoods depending on it. Every stage has different effects on each livelihood activity but generally stated cattle farmers have seen their pastures decreased rapidly, fishermen have first seen open water bodies increased but later decreased again, and new livelihood activities as making mats from the paparyusses have taken a major flight.
   Natural burial grounds employ a variety of methods of memorialization. Families that bury their loved ones in nature preserves can record the GPS coordinates of the location where they are buried, without using physical markers. Some natural burial sites use flat wooden plaques, or a name written on a natural rock. Many families plant trees, or other native plants near the grave to provide a living memorial.
  
  Section::::Alternative methods of burial.
  
  Alternatives to ground burials include: burial in a coral reef, sky burial and burial at sea.
  
  Section::::Alternative methods of burial.:Coral reefs.
   There are a number of different natural burial parks across Australia, each of them slightly different in what they offer. One of the more advanced park is Lake Macquarie Memorial Park, on the Central Coast of New South Wales which contains a Natural Memorial reserve, dedicated to natural Burials.
  
  Section::::Locations.:New Zealand.
  
  New Zealand's Natural Burial organisation was started in 1999 by Mark Blackham. It is a not-for-profit organization that advocates for natural cemeteries, promotes the concept to the public, and certifies cemeteries, funeral directors and caskets for use in participating cemeteries.
   In traditional "jhooming", an area with dense bamboo growth or fairly dense secondary growth is chosen and cultivation plots laid out.
  
  Tracts of virgin climax forest are preserved as sacred groves around the area.
  
  The land is cleared apart from a few large trees, which are thinned, and the cut vegetation is spread out to dry, protecting the soil during this period.
  
  It is then burned just before the rains start, and the ash is washed into the soil to provide fertilizer for crops such as cereals, pulses, oil seeds, vegetables and fiber crops.
   Cremated remains are sometimes placed inside concrete coral reef balls, and ceremoniously placed in the sea as part of a reef ecosystem. These balls are used to repair damage to coral reefs, and to provide new habitat for fish and other sea life.
  
  Section::::Alternative methods of burial.:Sky burial.
  
  In some parts of Tibet and Mongolia, a person's remains are fed to vultures in a burial known as Sky burial. This is seen as being good to the environment as well as good karma in Buddhism.
  
  Section::::Alternative methods of burial.:Burial at sea.
   Modern uses: In modern times, sacred groves have become biodiversity hotspots, as various species seek refuge in the areas due to progressive habitat destruction, and hunting. Sacred groves often contain plant and animal species that have become extinct in neighboring areas. They therefore harbor great genetic diversity. Besides this, sacred groves in urban landscapes act as "lungs" to the city as well, providing much needed vegetation cover.
  
  Section::::Threats.
   Eco-friendly funeral practices in Canada can include:
  
  BULLET::::- Burial at sea
  
  BULLET::::- Tree planting
  
  BULLET::::- Green/natural burials
   The burial ceremony is extremely expensive and usually entails the sacrifice of water buffaloes and cows. In Ratanakiri Jarai people is replacing the sacrifice of big animals by big objects like motorcycles. Some decease persons are buried with their motorbike. If the family of the deceased cannot afford the ceremony, it can be held up for several years.
  
  After a number of years, the tombs are abandoned. This final ceremony of the abandonment of the tomb marks the point where death becomes final and the deceased spirit is released, thus releasing a widow for remarriage for instance.
   Virtually all buildings in and around the aldea of Tela have running water, flush toilets and electricity. Many farther aldeas and caserios have no running water or electricity; some are made up entirely of bamboo or thatch huts.
   Likewise, agriculturists in the mountains practice an extensive variety of soil fertility management procedures, including :
  
  BULLET::::- crop rotation and mixed cropping
  
  BULLET::::- agro-forestry
  
  BULLET::::- biomass
  
  BULLET::::- nutrient management
  
  They also use an intensive livestock-raising system in the management of the fertility of their soil. Livestock includes smallstock and a limited amount of cattle. In the dry season between December and May, livestock is allowed to roam free, so he can consume crop residues and leaves of wild bushes.
  
presuppositions: Highly dense populations have little land for burial of the dead. A lot of land is required to deal with the dead.
corrections: There is plenty of space on Earth for the dead. Not a lot of land is required to deal with the dead.
raw_presuppositions: Highly dense populations have little land for burial of the dead. A lot of land is required to deal with the dead.
raw_corrections: There is plenty of space on Earth for the dead. Not a lot of land is required to deal with the dead.