Sky Sepulchre
sharp knives slashing
scalp ripped away
pounded battered
pieces sent astray
incense smoldering
whistle is blowing
Arrive, depart
rippling pools growing
flesh givimg way
away!.!.!. away!.!.!. away
Sky burial or ritual dissection was once a common funerary practice in Tibet wherein a human corpse is cut into small pieces and placed on a mountain top, exposing it to the elements or the mahabhuta and animals – especially to birds of prey!. In Tibetan the practice is known as jhator (Tibetan: bya gtor), which literally means, "giving alms to the birds!."
Gao Xingjian has a poem on Sky Burial but this is not a direct translation, it is my poor attemt to visualize it in an alternate way!.Www@QuestionHome@Com