Tibetan culture has a ritual called the “sky burial” in which people who have died are brought up to places within the mountains which have special meaning, and are then cut into pieces by somebody trained to do so, after which their bodies are left to be eaten by the surrounding vultures and dogs of the mountains. It may sound barbaric to a person who identifies with western culture, but this practice is an important part of Tibetan tradition as it holds true significance to the Tibetan people