Robbing Ancient Tombs Is a Crime Too

Who owns the items stolen by tomb robbers? Whose property is being stolen? All items within a tomb belong exclusively to the tomb owner, who is the deceased, not their family members. Family members bear the responsibility and right of guardianship and supervision. Since burial objects are interred as companions for the deceased, they rightfully and practically belong to the deceased. Therefore, the deceased is the owner of all items within the tomb.

Although the deceased's physical body perishes and loses functionality, the deceased remains a sentient being, with the mental faculty (manas) and ālaya-vijñāna (storehouse consciousness) enduring. They retain the capacity to possess, guard, and utilize the burial objects, regardless of whether they can practically use them or harbor attachment toward them. Until the burial objects decay completely, no one else is permitted to use them. Unless the tomb owner appears in a dream to entrust someone with instructions on their use, any unauthorized removal constitutes theft—this includes family members. Even for living individuals with physical bodies, all possessions are ultimately owned and utilized by the consciousness-mind. The body is employed by the consciousness-mind, which rightfully cares for and protects the body. Regardless of the owner's disposition, items eternally belong to their owner.

Even if the deceased has been reborn as a ghost, animal, or celestial being (deva), those items still belong to that individual. Others may not casually take and use them unless exchanging them for other items as substitutes. For instance, suppose you purchased a set of furniture and placed it in your home, then moved abroad permanently, with no certainty of returning. Nevertheless, that furniture and your house remain your property. Regardless of the item's utility, what belongs to whom remains eternally theirs. Irrespective of whether the owner is compassionate, generous, or magnanimous, only the owner or proprietor may permit the use or disposal of the items. Otherwise, any use by others constitutes theft.