Lay your body down

This was more of a waking dream. I was listening to CSN and the line came up "Mother Earth will swallow you, Lay your body down". I had heard it many times before, without any sort of response - it was a logical follow through to the song idea.

However, this time I had a flash of insight that startled me.

Imagine a world where the planet truly is a goddess - Gaia for example. The people of this world are very aware that they tread the surface of their mother deity, and in general try to live good lives. The highest honor is a form of sacrifice - to lay down in a shallow grave and be accepted back into the bosom of the earth. A hero, or merely a person who has lived well and is tired, will be accepted and drawn into the earth, home to the goddess.

If, however, one has not lived well, no matter how long they live, how decrepit they get, they are not accepted - the earth rejects them and they must continue living. They will not be accepted back to the bosom of the goddess until they have atoned for ill deeds, made reparations to those wronged, and/or done well long enough to balance their former misdeeds.