funerals

Last week near my house there was a very loud and ostentatious funeral. I asked some questions about funerals, and this is what I found:

A funeral for someone who has died in the area of Hunan, China where I live has many parts, all related to the folk religion beliefs that adherents hold. A passerby knows that a funeral is being held because the family of the dead person erects a tent for people to come and show their respect to the dead person’s family.

The first step of the commemoration process is called “song zhong”. This involves gathering the descendants of the dead person together to meet together. The dead person reveals his/her wishes to the descendants. If the descendants carry out the wishes of the dead person, they are insured a good fortune in the future. This step exemplifies a key aspect of Chinese culture- that of honoring the ancestors and “giving face” to the family.

The second step of the funeral process involves setting off fireworks to alert the neighbors and friends that someone has died. This is called “baosan”, or letting others know that they need to come to the funeral ceremony. During this stage, the family members of the dead person wear white, and wear an off-white piece of thick gauze around their head, in honor of the dead person. At this time family members are expected to cry, having not cried during the days leading up to their ancestor’s death. When visitors come by the tent to pay respects to the family, the family members bow and say “thank you” to the people for coming to honor the dead person.

Third, the body is put in a box to be buried. The dead person’s head is shaved, body washed, and “shou yi”, special clothing, adorned. The body is put in the box within 24 hours of dying, arranged for people to look at.

Fourth, family members begin the “geguan”, or discussion about the day they will go to the mountain to bury the box.

The fifth step in the process is “diao yan”, which is more of people showing their respect to the dead person.

The sixth step is the “jie san”. Three days after a person has died, his soul goes to the afterworld. Family members invite monks to come and read from the “Jing wen”, which is the Buddhists’ holy book. The words that are said are meant to comfort the soul and allow it to go to heaven instead of staying on the earth.

Finally, there is “chu bing”, when the box is taken to the mountain and put into the ground. There are more fireworks at this stage, alerting the people on the streets to what is taking place.

For the next three years, the family observes “ju sam”, which is a peaceful and respectful time acknowledging that someone has died. (In ancient times, the son would stay at home for three years to show his respect.) Thus concludes the funeral process for the dead person.

Interesting, huh?