Cremation vs burial: the cultural divide splitting Spain

Goodbye to bones: why cremation is becoming the new funeral norm

A middle-aged person sitting in a bar says, without flinching: "When I die, burn me." Twenty years ago, that sentence would have sounded like heresy. Today it is almost commonplace. Cremation has gone from being a marginal practice to becoming the majority option in many Western countries, and Spain is no exception. But behind this change in habits there is not just a matter of taste: the economy, the lack of cemetery space and, according to some, a loss of respect for the dead all weigh in.

Where does this "repulsive fashion" of burning the dead come from, as defenders of traditional burial call it? The answer has historical, economic and even geopolitical layers.

From the funeral pyre to the crematorium: a millennial tradition

Burning the dead is not a modern invention. Cultures such as the Romans already cremated their fallen legionaries during the republican expansion, to prevent enemies from desecrating the bodies. In ancient Rome, slaves and beggars ended up in a common grave, while citizens could choose between cremation and inhumation. Further back, the kurgan peoples practised funeral fire thousands of years ago. The Iliad recounts Achilles' funeral with a colossal pyre. So, in reality, the "tradition" of burial is neither universal nor immemorial; what we consider classic today is just one of the many ways of saying goodbye to loved ones.

The current debate, however, has a recent turning point: the war in Ukraine. The sight of mobile crematoria burning soldiers on the spot has shocked many. It has been said that Russian forces used these devices to eliminate evidence and save space, which has given cremation a macabre and dehumanising tinge. But it has also brought a reality to the table: in conflicts with thousands of dead, burning bodies is faster and cheaper than burying them.

The cost of dying: bury or cremate?

In real life, the decision has a lot to do with the wallet. A traditional burial costs between 3,000 and 5,000 euros in Spain, while a cremation runs around 1,500-2,500. The difference is not small, especially for families on tight budgets. Moreover, the "perpetual niche" sold by insurance policies is actually a temporary concession: 99 years or less, after which the remains end up in a common grave. As many voices point out, dying poor can miccionan ending up in an anonymous hole whether you are buried or burned.

But there is another factor: land use. The cemeteries of large cities are saturated. In many municipalities, the concession period has been reduced to 20-30 years, after which remains are exhumed and thrown into the common grave to make room for the next one. Cremation, on the other hand, allows the ashes to be kept in an urn that takes up hardly any space. Or scattered, if regulations allow. For some, that lightness is precisely what is missing: a physical trace, a place to go and weep.

The emotional factor and the loss of ritual

Some argue that cremation is a sign of society's dehumanisation. Burying the dead, visiting them, leaving flowers, is a ritual that brings comfort. Burning the body, reducing it to dust, is perceived as a break with that connection. The image of soldiers incinerated in Ukraine, or that of the participants in a well-known South Korean series where the dead disappear without a trace, feed the unease. In the series, the protagonists are treated as waste before dying; their cremation is the final act of erasing their identity.

At the other extreme are those who prefer alternatives such as natural burial —being devoured by birds or buried in a forest— or simply donating their body to science. The idea of "serving as fertiliser for a tree" is gaining trinc among the most environmentally conscious, although Spanish legislation makes it difficult.

Religion and hypocrisy

Another open front: the Catholic Church banned cremation for centuries, considering that the body must be preserved for the resurrection. It was not until 1963 that the Vatican allowed it, albeit with reservations. Today, many Catholics choose it without remorse, which for some critics is a blatant contradiction. "Christians sinning every day more and better, up to the final sacrilege," people comment sarcastically.

Closing: the unsettling figure

In practice, many of those who opt for cremation do so not out of conviction but out of pragmatism. The same pragmatism that leads, in some cities, to the remains from expired niches being removed and dumped without a name. In the end, the question is not so much how we are burned, but whether anyone will remember who we were. And that comfort, whether buried or cremated, is not guaranteed by even the most expensive marble.