CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — Azaam Afaan did not want to be late. The first funeral since Friday’s terrorist attack was about to begin, and though he had no idea who was being buried, he just knew he needed to participate. “It’s like you’re short of breath,” he said, explaining what it has been like to wait so long for the burials to begin after a gunman killed 50 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. “Now we can breathe freely. They’re going to the place they’re supposed to be.”Islam’s rituals of death prioritize immediate burial and a joyful departure.

Source: New York Times March 20, 2019 12:13 UTC