This paper investigates the death ritual of sky burials in Tibetan Buddhism and the reason this ritual is practiced. There are contrasting justifications of the practice that span from religious significance to practical rationales. I argue sky burials are performed out of religious custom and that they are not practiced due to the environmental barriers present in the Tibetan plateau, as some scholars believe. This paper explains how Tibetan Buddhists perceive death, the various elements of the sky burial ritual and how it is performed, and lastly the varied interpretations of justifications for the ritual
