How did traditional Baltic funeral rites show a belief in life after death?

Traditional Baltic funeral rites provided clear evidence of a belief in life after death, reflecting a worldview where the boundary between the living and the dead was considered fluid and permeable.1

Key practices demonstrating this belief include:

• Funerary Offerings: The deceased were often burned on funeral pyres alongside their best possessions, including weapons, jewelry, horses, and hunting dogs. This practice suggests that these items were intended for use by the departed in the afterlife.1
• Symbolic Companionship: Funeral rites frequently mirrored wedding ceremonies, featuring wedding costumes, songs, and dances. This reflected the belief that the dead anticipated a new companion with the same joy that the living feel for a new family member.1
• Continued Presence: The dead were believed to continue living invisibly among the community. They were often invited to participate in important occasions, with a place set for them at the festival table, and the living felt a moral responsibility to provide for their welfare through regular offerings of food.1
• The "Other Sun": Baltic cosmology included the concept of viņa saule ("the other sun"), which represented the invisible world and served as the abode of the dead.2