Social anthropologists are of like mind when it comes to dating the beginning onset of civilization. Without fail, all begin to mark this milestone after finding indications of primitive peoples burying their dead. Death rituals and passage ceremonies suggest a wider vision of the brutal Neolithic landscape than mere survival, and the notion of expending scarce caloric resources for a spiritual purpose is suggestive of the always ambiguous relationship to death that humans of every culture and society experience.
While much has changed in the world since our prehistoric ancestors roamed the Savannah and buried their dead, little has changed in the predilection of subsequent generations to honor their dead while seeing them off to the afterlife. That makes sense since the human condition mandates the questioning of the unknown and finding answers for those left behind has been a central aspect of burial practices for eons.
Today a new generation of mourners are looking for ways to honor their dead, and after the industrialization of the death industry for more than a century, they are casting about for a more personalized ceremony that doesn’t reduce this tragic loss into a singular funereal event in favor of an everlasting memorial.
A New Generation of Mourners
Every generation, like the generation that preceded it, carries the burden of honoring their dead and seeing them on the next leg of their journey while coping with that loss on the temporal stage for those left behind.
While cultural conditions have a proscribed approach to the interning of the dead, each generation molds those prescriptions to fit their own unique needs. Indeed, for years burial was the preferred option when it came to disposing of the dead, but the lifting of religious proscriptions has witnessed a boost in cremations over the last few decades.
Grief counselors note that proximity of a loved one’s ashes, often in a place of prominence within the home, such as the mantle, allowed keeping the door of memories open long after the memorial service is over, and the guests have gone home. As time passed and the healing begins to take hold, the ash-filled urn is often moved to less conspicuous parts of the house.
For a new generation learning to deal with death, the millennials, harnessing the power of science to create an everlasting memorial is appealing.
A company involved in the death care industry, Austin, Texas-based Eterneva, has taken these considerations in mind with an appealing option to the younger millennial generation. By creating memorial diamonds from the carbonized remains of a deceased loved one, the company’s co-founder Adelle Archer has helped transform the way we memorialize our dead.
Explore Mourning Your Loss of a Loved One with a Diamond
While death can move tragically fast sometimes, the healing process for those left behind can take years. Indeed, the pressure to quickly assimilate this loss and move on is strong, and the ceremonial process is geared to quickly put the entire ordeal behind us as quickly as possible with the goal of “getting on with our lives.” If you want a more personalized grieving process that allows you the ability to keep your loved one close to your heart, Eterneva is leading the way in adopting new techniques that are available to allow all of us to grieve in our way. Diamonds are forever, but the love for a lost loved one is truly eternal. Combining those two, utilizing the painstakingly loving process of growing a laboratory diamond, provides a way to celebrate their lives rather than mourn their loss.