NewPhilosopher Dead and aliveMaybe what happens in the west is
that we don’t just bury the dead, we try
to bury death itself.
We have all these death institu-
tions, we have the hospitals, the hos-
pices – when somebody is dying it’s like
they’re taken out of society. And they
are just gone. We have put death so far
away that we have nothing to do with
it. “Oh, Grandpa, he’s gone, he’s in the
hospital. Maybe he’ll never come back.”
You say that your project is intended
to contribute to public debate, to encourage
conversations about death. Why do you
think it’s important to talk about death?
Death is the natural ending of life.
It’s a natural part of our life – without
death there is no life. We have to real-
ise that we are only here for this short
time. It’s important to help people who
have lost someone and I think it’s very
important to talk about this. We of-
ten don’t want to talk to someone else
about their loss because then we have
to face our own mortality. But there is
no way out, we are going to die.
In the end I think that we have to
honour the dead by celebrating them
a bit more.By being so exposed to death and
grieving, do you feel that your attitude
towards it has changed – that you view
death in a different light?
I am not afraid of dying any more.
But I am afraid of dying alone – with
nobody around me. And I really hope
that I will be celebrated at my funeral.
A big party celebrating me and my
crazy life and with reminiscenses from
all the rituals I have documented.