Buddhist and Christian Funerals: How Each Is Usually Arranged
Buddhist and Christian funerals each rest on their own beliefs and follow their own order. In Buddhist tradition, death is…
How Do Families Arrange the Funeral Day? Traditional Considerations and Condolence Etiquette
On the day of a funeral, many Chinese families follow a few traditional arrangements. When the coffin is closed, pregnant…
Tou Qi, the 49th Day, the 100th Day and the First Anniversary: How Chinese Families Mark the Mourning Days
After a funeral, one of the questions families ask most is which days come next. In short, many Chinese families…
Ancestor Worship: The Common Order of Prayers and Traditional Considerations for Offerings
Many Chinese families follow the idea of "deities first, then ancestors" (先神后祖). At home, they pray first to the Jade…
Customs During the Mourning Period: How Families Approach Weddings, Chinese New Year and Visiting
During the mourning period (shou xiao, 守孝), many Chinese families traditionally step back from celebrations: they may not attend others'…
When Family Can’t Often Be There to Pay Respects: Merging Tablets, Tablet Care and Proxy Offerings
Readers often ask what to do when no one at home is able to keep up ancestor worship. With children…
Can Ancestors’ Remains Be Moved? Common Practices and Procedures for Exhumation and Reburial
Yes. An ancestor who was buried can be exhumed through jian gu (捡骨, "gathering the bones", also called shi jin…
Ancestral Tablets at Home, in a Columbarium or a Clan Temple: How Families Decide
An ancestral tablet (shen zhu pai, 神主牌) can be kept on a home altar or placed in a columbarium, temple…
Duties to Our Ancestors: How Malaysian Chinese Families Remember, from Qingming to the Ancestral Tablet
What many people call our "duties to ancestors" comes down to remembering and caring: looking after the place where a…