Chinese Funeral Ceremony: Part 3 - Burning of paper `home'.

[Cecil Lee]

In this last part of the Chinese ceremony:
1. Home prayers are conducted by a Taoist priest.
In the first picture, if you look carefully in one of the pictures, you will see that the man (wearing a white shirt) has a square piece of cloth held by a pin on his left short sleeeve of his shirt.
Traditionally, Chinese wear a piece of square cloth on their clothing and the colour of the cloth deplicts the relationship with the dead. The piece of square cloth is worn during the period of mourning.
During the mourning period, family members must not wear colourful clothings but white or black clothings.
Notice also in the first picture that family members are wearing the straw dress during the ceremony. Notice also that they are carrying straw (beige or white) lanterns.


These lanterns are used mainly for funeral purposes.

Contrast this to lanterns of similar shape but in Red colour. Red coloured lanterns are for the living and commonly placed inside the homes (especially in the past when there is no electricity. Nowadays, a pair of red lanterns are commonly found on each side e.g. outside the main entrance.
Colours such as red or bright colours cannot be worn. If so, this is disrespectful to the dead.
2. Elaborate paper homes and lantern are displayed and later burned.
Paper `money', paper cars etc.. are also offered to the dead. In the hope that he can use it in his after life.
Nowadays, even paper handphones, paper hifi equipment, paper television sets and even paper credit cards are burned. In the hope that the dead can make use of it.
3. Finally, in some of the pictures you can the profile of the gravesite which is in the shape of a Horse shoe.
Symbollically, the horse shoe design of the gravesite is that the horse shoe shape acts like a solid backing for the back of the grave.
This is identical to the Four Symbolic Animals for Yang Feng Shui. In this case, Yin or Feng Shui of the dead also provides for a solid backing for the gravesite.
Warmest Regards,
Cecil