Living among the dead

In his lecture, Darcy talked about how many First Nations communities describe the dead as their witness, peaking in and observing their lives. I started thinking about which other cultures share this belief. Coincidently, this week my roommate brought to my attention that there is a community in Egypt that live among the dead. The City of the Dead is in Cairo, and is Egypt's largest populated slum. It is a 4 mile long cemetery where over half a million Egyptian's live and work among ancient and new tombs and mausoleums. Some families live here so they can be close to decreased relatives, while others are forced into the city due to Egypt's crippling economy. Those who are forced into this housing may or may not believe in the importance of a close relationship between the living and dead, but I think it is a fair assumption that if you are living in a mausoleum, you will probably feel some connection with the dead.