KUALA LUMPUR – You can call it an ‘interactive memorial’ or a ‘digital shrine’ but there is deep humanity to the idea of installing a QR code on the gravestone of your loved ones.
Although this concept has taken off overseas, a local tech company is pioneering the idea in Malaysia and is already taking in orders through its digital legacy portal known as www.beyondlifedigital.com.
It’s founder and president Dato’ Dr. Devman Segar (pictured below) said: “When we walk through graveyards, we only see the photo, the name, date of birth and the person’s date of passing.
“Rarely do we know who these people were, how they lived and what their lives truly meant for their loved ones,” said Devman.
“So it is rather befitting and appropriate to install a QR code so that people will be able to scan the QR codes with their devices and learn more about the people buried in a cemetery, say even 30 or 50 years from now.
“We provide an interactive ‘living’ memory that serves as a digital legacy for future generations,” he said.
“Families now live in geographically disparate areas so a visit to a loved one’s grave is not going to be frequent or even possible for years in a row.
“So, by having a QR code, and by logging in to our website, the memorial will induce a sense of shared experience for close and extended family members, friends and associates of the departed ones,” explained Devman.
He said the QR code also provides the opportunity for children to learn about the grandfather or grandmother they never met while visiting his/her gravesite.
Random graveyard visitors can also learn of the individual buried there but for privacy, family members can opt to set the settings to private.
Devman said the concept has seen a lot of interest from people of different walks of life because many want their life’s work and their life story to live long beyond them.
“The believe that they have a legacy that others should respect or at least know about and cherished by friends and family.
“Some don’t want a QR code just simply to link to their life exploits or other adventures but to preserve and remember their work in various fields.
“For instance, an academician or a scientist might want to preserve his journals and findings where it is meant to say: “You didn’t know me but here, take a look! My life meant something and I sacrificed my time on earth for a particular purpose or reason,” says Devman.
“This way, we can pull out our cellphones, scan and see the face beneath the gravestone and learn about their life, achievements, passions, their loves, and etc.“
Devman adds, underpinning this innovation is the age-old desire to make our memorials to the deceased as meaningful and as befitting as possible.
“You might be gone, but you will never be forgotten. Your memories will live on continuously with Beyondlifedigital.com in the world of digital legacy.” he says.
Besides QR codes, Devman’s tech company also offers other services such as a Digital Legacy Vault, Digital Legacy Library and a Digital Legacy Centre planned for construction sometime in the near future.
For more information, log on to www.beyondlifedigital.com or call 03-79710481. – MoneyMalaysia.my