A repatriation from Japan to Indonesia

After a local Japanese funeral company was challenged with a repatriation to Bali, Indonesia, they turned to us. We had worked with this company before – providing embalming many times in the past – so they were familiar with our expertise for embalming and repatriations.

A delay to proceedings

The deceased was an Indonesian man who had died at the young age of 42. His wife was Japanese and he had an 18-year-old daughter. It was nearing the end of December and his daughter was getting ready to take her final exams which would lead to her entrance into university. The family would have to wait almost four weeks until the exams were done before they could head to Bali with their loved one. As a company that specialises in embalming, this was not a challenge for us. We regularly embalm people when there is a delay until the final disposition and this was one of those times.

Resting in the family home

After the embalming was completed, we transferred him to the family home in Tokyo, where he lay on the futon in his bedroom until his daughter’s exams were finished one month later. I dropped in weekly to check his condition and have tea with his wife and daughter. His wife confided in me that she was happy to not have to rush through the funeral rites and she regularly fell asleep next to him night after night. She missed him dearly The family was nervous about going to Bali for the funeral as they didn’t speak English or Indonesian. The deceased man was fluent in Japanese so they spoke nothing but Japanese at home. After getting so attached to this family, I volunteered to go with them to Bali at no charge as their translator. It was my opportunity to witness a Balinese Hindu funeral service on the tropical island of Bali up close and follow through with this case to the end.

The transfer

We completed the necessary repatriation documents, arranged the flight and carefully packaged the Indonesian man in a Bioseal airtight pouch with Japanese casket and air tray. The Balinese family picked us up at the Denpasar airport in the evening and after clearing the casket through customs they took me to my hotel. The deceased and his family were taken to their village so they could prepare for the two days of visitation and ceremony. The following morning a cousin of the deceased picked me up at my hotel and drove me to the family home where the Balinese Hindu funeral service was going to be held. They were all quite anxious as they knew that he had died a month before. They were afraid to open the casket and take him out of his Bioseal pouch because they were sure that he would be in poor condition. I proceeded to open up the casket and Bioseal and to their surprise, he looked like he was sleeping. They had never seen an embalmed body in their small village so this was a miracle to them. We dressed him in traditional clothing and lay him on a bed so friends and family could come by to visit him for the rest of the day.

We completed the necessary repatriation documents, arranged the flight and carefully packaged the Indonesian man in a Bioseal airtight pouch with Japanese casket and air tray

The funeral The following day, they picked me up early in the morning and as I arrived at the home the priest was already chanting and performing the funeral ritual. The funeral rites went on throughout the morning and then after a few hours the casket was placed in a bade, which is a tall carrying platform a few metres high. The bade was carried through the small village streets in a lively fashion to confuse the evil spirits. The procession continued down to the beach and along to the cremation area.

The cremation was performed in an open area with family and friends watching while dramatic traditional music played and the priest continued to chant

The cremation was performed in an open area with family and friends watching while dramatic traditional music played and the priest continued to chant. After the cremation was completed and the bones had cooled, they were scattered in the nearby sea. In Balinese Hindu beliefs, death is part of the cyclical transition of life, death and rebirth. It is not a sombre affair. This was one of the many fascinating experiences in my career that I will never forget. These experiences are valuable as it helps me understand the families I serve.