Around 150 guests attended a ceremony at Bremgarten cemetery in the Swiss capital on Thursday.
In 2016, there were around 37,000 Buddhists living in Switzerland, many originating from Thailand.
The city’s government has set a goal of offering members of the world’s five biggest religions appropriate funeral services according to their needs.
Christians and Muslims can already be buried at the Bremgarten cemetery. A Jewish cemetery is also available in Bern. The next step is to create a special place for Hindus. People of no religious faith can be buried in all three cemeteries in Bern.
Most of the Swiss population (8.4 million) are Christian. Catholics remain the biggest faith group – 37% of permanent residents in 2016, down from 47% in 1970. The percentage of Swiss Protestants has fallen since 1970 from 49% to 25% in 2015. The other biggest religious communities include Muslims (353,000), Hindus (38,000) and Jews (17,000).
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On Saturday the Lake Geneva, Valais and Basel regions are expected to record the first tropical day of the year, with temperatures exceeding 30°C.
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The Swiss economy saw the clouds that had gathered over its prospects lift somewhat in May. However, the KOF economic barometer is still below its long-term average.
Direct operations too dangerous in Swiss landslide valley
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By Friday morning 365 people had been forced to leave their homes because of Wednesday's landslide in the Swiss village of Blatten.
Franco-Swiss raclette war set to be settled on Sunday
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The battle for the world's largest raclette will be transformed on Sunday in Saint-Gingolph, canton Valais, into a raclette of friendship served at the border.
Flood risk threatens Swiss valley after ‘millennium event’ glacier collapse
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Two days after a gigantic avalanche of ice, mud and debris buried much of the village of Blatten in canton Valais, the danger is not over.
Situation in Swiss landslide valley remains unstable
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Authorities in Valais said on Thursday that it was still too dangerous to begin clear-up activities around the village of Blatten.
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Around 250 people attended the special ceremony held at the Buddhist temple in Echallens in the canton of Vaud on Sunday to pay their respects to the former ruler of Thailand who died on October 13 at the age of 88. The “Wat Buddhavihara” temple and Buddhist centre serves the spiritual needs of the resident…
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With the tip of his spatula, an artist perfects the round of the shoulder of Ganesh. The small god with the elephant head is seated on the knee of Shiva, one of the great Hindu deities. At the foot of the construction, another artist prepares mortar, the noise of his mixing machine drowning out the…
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