the wailing lament of the funeral chant , the frequent gesture of the sign of the cross , the smell of smoky incense that wafted over the ground and , finally , the reverence with which the bodies wrapped in sailcloth were laid to rest in deep graves and the consecrated earth piled on top , all made a huge impression on the watchers : earth to earth , ashes to ashes , dust to dust , watched over by the wooden crosses .