Tokyo: Japan`s Emperor Akihito will break a centuries-old burial tradition by opting to be cremated like most ordinary citizens in the densely-populated nation, officials said on Friday.
That would mark the first time in almost four hundred years that a Japanese emperor has not been buried, according to the Imperial Household Agency.
It added that the 79-year-old emperor`s wife, Empress Michiko, would also be cremated. The agency, which runs the affairs of Japan`s revered imperial family, said the couple were concerned about limited space in Tokyo`s royal graveyard.
"Cremation has become a common practise in Japan and imperial history has seen both cremations and burial," the palace said in a statement.
Cremation is common in the country of 128 million people where space is at a premium, while it is also a frequent practise in Buddhism.
The imperial couple`s remains would be placed into a pair of relatively modest, yet-to-be-constructed tombs in the graveyard where wartime Emperor Showa, his father Emperor Taisho and their wives were buried.
