Two Worldview Perspectives on Death: Mayan & Swedish Attitudes toward Death

Abstract: Death is life ́s companion, it has existed throughout the history of humanity and of all living things. Mayan culture represents one of the oldest civilizations native to the American continent and is renowned for its traditions and spirituality. Sweden is recognized as a modern-day industrialized, technologically advanced, and secular society. How do these two different cultures handle the subject of death? Studying how these two cultures view and confront death provides a unique opportunity to appreciate how worldviews can differ with regard to the same phenomenon. This study aims to find out what opinions and attitudes modern-day Mayans of Guatemala and Swedes have about death and to discover any similarities or differences between them.