Other than the intention to disrespect, Is there any community or culture, past or present, who buries the dead face down, upright, or any position other than flat on the back face up?
The containers in the Plain of Jars in Laos are thought to be Iron Age sarcophagi, in which the dead were buried seated, legs drawn up to their chests.
A common Islamic tradition is to be buried on the side, with the face turned toward Mecca.
Many early Anglo-Saxon burials in England were done with the corpse curled up in a fetal position on their side. It is thought that they were buried this way simply so that they could fit into a smaller hole.
Many corpses have also been found buried face down, but most of these were thought to be “live burials” (there’s a pleasant thought…). I don’t know if that qualifies as disrespect for the OP.
Getting these out of the way:
Robin Williams in Patch Adams: “And if we bury you ass up, I have got a place to park my bike.”
Charlie Sheen’s helmet marking in Platoon: “When I die, bury me upside-down, so the world can kiss my ass.”
“Bury me standing, because I have lived on my knees.” - Rom proverb
One of my uncles was buried face down. Shortly before he died he told my aunt that if she ever dated anyone else, he’d come back and scratch her eyes out. She said, “So I buried his @ss face-down so the more he scratched, the deeper he’d dig himself!”
This was supposed to be the preferred burial position for vampires (no joke).
The theory was that, when they tried to dig their way out, they’d end up burrowing further into the ground, instead.
Incan mummies were generally buried in a fetal position, but occasionally they’d be standing up.
Here’s a NatGeo story about a very large burial site.
The curled up fetal position on one’s side is called a Hocker position in archaeology, and thought to represent sleeping (also handily reducing the amount of digging needed, as noted). It was the default burial position of the Corded Ware cultures of Neolithic Northern Europe, and many others.
Upright-positioned burials are a notable exception to the standard flat-on-the-back, face-up position in certain Mesolithic North European cemeteries. These are thought to represent the graves of shamans.