Cremation or burial?

Whichever is cheaper. I'll probably tell my kids to give my body to the state no need to waste money on burying me.

I'd prefer something practical, like food production. But since that's not allowed for some irrational reason, I go with the burial as it doesn't damage nature as much.

I would want as much of my body as possible to be used for scientific study.

Cremation.

However, I'm coming to detest the way the funeral industry is starting to treat it, and are turning it into just another way of taking advantage of those who survive the deceased. The law requires a body to be placed into a box before it can be incinerated, so they are selling these elaborate wooden caskets to make the process "more comfortable", and charging $3000+ for the privilege. Like, wut? The person is dead, they aren't going to be "uncomfortable" getting burned to ash.

I've always liked how the Indians handle cremation. A wooden pyre is built under the body outdoors. The body is wrapped in a simple linen cloth. And the body is set alight and fueled until it is ash. Simple. Easy. And most importantly, visibly final for the loved ones. Space isn't wasted and the deceased can return from whence they came.

Although, the Tibetan Sky Burial and Zoroastrian Tower of Silence are even better, though significantly more morbid.

cremation because its so much cheaper

Cremation all the way.

Burial.

I'm still trying to decide. I'm not sure I'm big on cremation mostly because I think it's harder for my remains to be reintegrated into the biosphere (with burials they're processed directly by animals whereas with cremation they just sort of scatter, though I guess that is somewhat poetic), though maybe if my ashes could be used to fertilize soil I'd want a garden planted and my ashes strewn across it.

My leading candidate right now is to be buried in the most porous casket I can find and have a tree planted over my grave, though this is contingent on being able to afford a tract of land where I can do this. Ideally, if I ever had a family we'd eventually start a burial grove.

I'm also considering a sky burial, though I'm not sure if I'm sold on it yet.

I'm pretty sure it's against the law to not be embalmed. But I could be wrong.

neither. I want a huge mausoleum~

I don't like the idea of cremation.

According to a source which I found in a quick Google search (which might be sketchy and definitely look like they have a distinct position against embalming) embalming isn't necessary, nor does it really harm the environment to not be embalmed. In certain cases embalming is forbidden (usually when the deceased had a contagious disease, because I guess that preserves the environment where the disease is residing). It's also against certain religious practices to be embalmed, so I don't think the government can really force it on people. The one exception is certain states require it when transporting the body.

As a sidenote, one other possibility would be to start a tradition of cremation where the ashes of multiple individuals are washed into an artificial body of water where people in the neighborhood can wash their clothes. At least I think that would be pretty cool, it would save energy from running washing machines and eliminate the need for synthetic laundry detergent, although it would require a bit more manual labor.

I'll wait til I'm all dead to decide.

Burial, my religious traditions specify so. If it were up to me, I'd choose to be dumped in the ocean.

I'd be interested in just being shot out into space.

Cremation. Much cheaper, I wouldn't want my friends or family to see me laying in a casket. I'd want them to remember me with a portrait of some sort. My father passed away last year, and remember seeing him for the one last time on the gurney, and it was difficult for sure. My sister, my Aunt, and myself we're the only ones that looked at it.

But the service we had a huge portrait of my father, and to me was much more comforting-- I remembered him during the time he lived, and his smile is what I remember most. I think it is just a whole hell of a lot easier, and cheaper.

I'm trying to convince my family to do a whole "Weekend at Bernie's" type party with my carcass--complete with explosion at the end.

Burial, no casket. Just find rich soil, dig a 6-10 foot hole, and throw my body in....

...Actually, this don't sound like a bad idea either...

That's fairly illegal. Don't worry, most caskets aren't going to stand up to dirt anyways. They did a Mythbusters where they buried Jamie alive in a fairly decent casket and dirt started seeping in almost immediately. You could probably just make a cheap wooden box and your body would be covered in dirt in no time.

Cremation. I'd like my ashes to be moulded into a pair of nipple piercings.

Hmmm...if the casket is biodegradable, I don't mind. I only said that because I want maggots, worms, and other organisms to have quick and easy access to my body...=P

Jeebus fawkin Christ the New Gamespots posting glitches are ANNOYING....

I was going to say the same thing. It'd be like that Futurama episode where Fry dies.

Rapture

This, though my more realistic answer would be cremation. I see normal ways of funerals and burials to be a waste of money, space, and time

Whatever's cheaper at the time. I'll be dead, so I don't really care if they throw my body into the sea.

I want my meat and bones to be fed some majestic creature, so my energy lives on.

Of those options though I'll take cremation over burial, burial they rip your guts out, put them in a bag if they're not sold on the black market, and take out your fluids and replace it with toxic chemicals, and my family would still be overpaying for a plot of cemetery, and overpay on the funeral and coffin. I've already told my family not to bother, if they insist on burial then they can wrap me up in burlap and dump lye all over me for all I care.

Like your idol?

I want to be cremated and turned into a diamond. It's still cheaper than getting a casket and burial plot and infinitely more awesome.

I like your thinking.

I don't really give a shit.

I'll just be dead so it's not really my problem.

Donate my body parts so I can awaken my secret power and control an army of organ recipients.

With you around, I'd prefer to be fumigated!

*shing shing twaaaang*

So TC you're disgusted of having your body rotting for years and being eaten by insects but you're not disgusted of having your body being burned while the flesh melts in your bones?

Fire is at least fascinating. Fermenting is most certainly not.

Crucifixion.

@br0kenrabbit: Fine, I'll give you that since I am also a big fan of flames.

Viking Burial

Burial. But yeah, it wouldn't really matter either way.

Cremation. Then I want to be mixed with soil then plant...a uhh...plant...in it...I think...

Burial.

some of my atheist chap don't mind their body dump at the river bank ....... they say that it will eventually grow as grass ... lol

My mom died a few months ago. Per her instructions we had her cremated. Just as well as she lost a lot of weight during her final illness and looked terrible. We put together a lovely collage of her through the years and everyone at the funeral loved it. I wouldn't mind having something like that myself.

My dad had died a few years ago. We cremated him also and kept him on a shelf until mom died. We then had both of the ashes mixed together and interred in a cemetery. One nice thing about cremation is that you can keep the ashes, spread them somewhere significant, throw them in the ocean, keep them.....whatever the person and/or you wanted. We waited until everyone could get together (cousins, friends, etc.) to have the interment.

Cremation

Just looked it up, apparently that will kill the plant.

Cremation.

Oh my god. Forget my plan. Thanks for the info. Just the cremation part then.

Cremation or pretty much anything other than burial. I can't understand why dead bodies need to occupy large extensions of lands that are perfectly suitable for houses, agriculture or just normal green areas for wildlife to, you know, be alive and stuff.

Ain't no one gonna want to eat that!