Conversation

Replying to
This makes total sense. It is the natural place in some ways. In traditional Indian life-stage script, the 3rd stage is "vanaprastha" (give up worldly life and go live in forest). The last stage, "sanyas" (renunciation) often implied voluntary ascetic death while in the forest.
Replying to and
In practical terms this makes absolutely no sense, since in the last stage (traditionally ages 75-100) you'd likely be in poor health and the best place for you would be heart of civilization where you could be cared for. I sometimes wonder how it actually worked in practice.
1
2
Replying to and
Read somewhere that samurai ritual seppuku was more in theory than practice, since someone would be there to cut off your head in one stroke before you could feel the pain of self-disembowelment. I wonder if all ritual suicide cultures have such a gap between theory and practice.
1
2
Show replies