Did David Bowie mistake Bali for
a Buddhist 'country' in his will?
Coconuts
Bali February 1, 2016
The news that rock legend David Bowie specified in his will that he
would like to be cremated
in Bali in line with “Buddhist rituals” has
been reported around the world, but there's something about the
story that doesn't sit right with us.
Apparently a longtime Buddhist with a strong
inclination towards the Eastern religion in his younger years,
Bowie relayed his fascination with Tibetan Buddhism in particular,
throughout his life, saying things like, “I was young, fancy free,
and Tibetan Buddhism appealed to me at that time. I thought,
‘There’s salvation.’”
Reports have pointed out that Bowie’s instructions
in his will, prepared in 2004, reaffirm his ultimate connection to
Buddhism: “I direct that my executors shall arrange for my
remains to be taken to the country of Bali and to be cremated there
in accordance with the Buddhist rituals of Bali.”
First off: did he really refer to Bali as a country?
Weird.
He added that if cremation in Bali wasn’t practical,
then he would still like his ashes scattered here, according to
Buddhist rites—Bowie ended up getting cremated in New Jersey on
Jan. 12.
But while it’s very exciting that Ziggy’s final
resting place could be our Island of the Gods, the odd thing is
that no one’s really pointed that Bali’s Buddhist population is a
tiny minority (about 0.5%) and the island is much more famous for
the rituals of its Hindu majority.