Bukusu subtribe of the Luhya community respects the dead. 

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When an individual dies they perform several rituals before and after burial as a sign of respect. 

The Bukusu, according to Citizen Digital cannot bury their dead without their head because they believe that only the body dies but not the soul or mind of an individual.  

Unlike other communities where the dead are really honoured, the community values the head so much such that they cannot imagine a body without it being taken to the grave. 

The community performs rituals for both the old and the young. The rituals, however, differ. The Idakho subtribe from the Luhya group bury their dead while seated.

 They always believe that the dead have powers to watch over the living. They bury them in this position to give them room so that they can watch on them. 

In a past interview published by the Standard Digital, Mzee Museve Mwidakho said; “We found these traditions in place and have to live with them. For the dead to fit into the coffin, the elders must hold a special conversation with them before they are buried,”

“Burying the dead in a sitting position sends away evil spirits,” he added.