Chinese Funerary Practices, Past and Present: An Unbroken Line
Michael J. Flanagan
Chinese funerary practices have a fascinating history dating back thousands of
years. These practices steeped in ritual and tradition are sometimes fascinating and other
times macabre, but always pragmatic. From the Shang Dynasty to the present, from the
tombs of emperors to the graves of peasants, the motivation of Chinese funerary practices
remains the same: to maintain a symbiotic relationship between the living and the dead
and create a balance between the realms of Heaven and Earth. The symbolism remains
the same, only the instrumentality has changed.
Chinese Funerary Practices are directly tied to religious and cultural beliefs that
are thousands of years old. Chinese religious beliefs are often associated with Taoism,
Buddhism and Confucianism, though the latter is often more closely associated with
Chinese funerary rites than the others, specifically because of the filial nature of
Confucianism and the centrality of ancestor worship as an expression of this nature. The
Chinese cosmological perspective is in some ways similar to other cultures, but uniquely
Chinese in its own right. Everything in the world was bifurcated into yin and yang, two
opposing yet complimentary forces that ruled the universe. Every thing could be said to
be either yin or yang (good/bad, male/female) or a combination of both. The ancient
rituals found in Chinese funerary rites have maintained their integrity throughout the
centuries. The means by which these rites were performed has changed, but the
symbolism that they adopt has not. An unbroken line has been maintained between
ancient foundations and contemporary practices.
2
During the Shang Dynasty (c. 1766-1040 B.C.E.), the supreme ruler of heaven
was known as Shang-ti or simply Ti, a term which later became associated with the
Chinese Emperor (Huang-ti or August Ti), who was for all intents and purposes a god on
earth.1 The Chinese concept of the soul is not thought of in the same way as in Western
Religions: souls were more inclined to be referred to as spirits and these appeared in two
specific forms, kuei (demons or ghosts) and shen (benevolent spirits that have been
properly cared for by their progeny).2
Two of the more salient aspects of ancient Chinese religious practices are
Divination and Ancestor Worship. Divination is divided into two methodologies,
understanding the manifestations of the natural and supernatural world, and the filial
responsibility to one’s ancestors.3 Divination can be traced back to the Shang (also called
Yin) Dynasty, where Oracle Bones were used for divination. Oracle Bones were made
from the scapula of cattle or tortoise shells by smoothing off the surface. The diviner
would pose a question to an ancestor or other powerful spirit and then heat the “bone”
with a hot poker, after which the resulting cracks would be interpreted as a positive or
negative response to the question. Our knowledge of this form of divination has been
greatly enhanced by the fact that the questions were sometimes recorded on the bone,
occasionally with the actual outcome of the event that prompted the divination in the first
place, providing the first known examples of Chinese writing.4 These bones and the
writing on them have been invaluable in ascertaining what ancient Chinese religious
1
Laurence G. Thompson, The Chinese Way in Religion (Encino, CA: Dickenson Publishing Co. 1973), p.
5.
2
Ibid., p.13.
3
Thompson, Chinese Religion, An Introduction, Fourth Edition (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co.,
1989), p.20.
4
Ibid., p.37.
3
beliefs entailed. One cannot attempt to understand Chinese funerary practices unless one
understands the concept of ancestor worship. Ancestor worship is central to Chinese
religion and culture. The Chinese word for lineage is tsu. Tsu refers to the male lineage
carrying a common surname. Women’s lineage is termed “outside tsu.”5 Ancestor
worship is a very personal, familial obligation, in that only one’s own ancestors are
venerated, thereby strengthening the family unit. The living and the dead had a symbolic,
symbiotic relationship. One performed sacrifices, the other bequeathed blessings.6
Ancestor worship consisted of funeral rites, mourning and spiritual maintenance.
Chinese funeral rites date back thousands of years to the Shang Dynasty.
Archeological finds in Chinese tombs include various goods to help the spirit in the
afterlife, including tools such as axes and spades as well as other grave goods. The tombs
were definitely gender and class specific.7 Certain burials also contained human and
animal remains used for sacrifice. These sacrifices (depending on the status of the
deceased) were in the form of animals, slaves, concubines and sometimes soldiers, who
were meant to serve and protect the deceased in the afterlife, although live sacrifices were
not as prevalent in the post-Shang period.8 During Neolithic times, bodies were buried in
orderly rows, oriented to the four cardinal directions of the compass. There also existed
the practice of secondary burial in which bodies of the deceased were exhumed, the
remaining flesh cleaned off the bones and then the bodies were rearranged in a specific
order.9 The mourning period was typified by a specific regimen to be adhered to, i.e. the
5
Ibid., p. 45.
Ibid., p.46.
7
Paul S. Ropp, Heritage of China (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1990), p. 23.
8
Ibid., p.29.
9
Ibid., p.25.
6
4
wearing of sackcloth, the consumption of specific food, and a predescribed amount of
wailings per day. Spiritual maintenance meant the continued veneration of the ancestors.
The location of the burial site was just as important, if not more so, than what
accompanied the corpse and the burial rites. The practice of selecting an ideal burial
location is known as Feng Shui or Geomancy. This pseudoscience, associated with
“wind and water” (the literal meaning of Feng Shui), is a method for divining the
dwelling place of both the living and the dead. The idea is to place the home or grave in
such an orientation as to balance yin and yang. Popular places for graveyards tend to be
close to mountains and rivers. Feng Shui was popular with Chinese commoners but was
taken extremely seriously by Chinese Emperors.
The most famous archaeological find in recent history is that of the first Emperor
of China, Qin Shihuang. Qin Shihuang (pronounced “chin shir-huang”) ruled China
during the late third century B.C.E. He was known as the first emperor of China because
he was able to unify the various Chinese states that had previously been at war with one
another. In addition to unifying the warring states, he codified laws, introduced a single
currency and began construction of the Great Wall to keep out marauding barbarians.
When Qin Shihuang died in 210 B.C.E., he was buried in a huge pyramid of Earth at the
base of Mount Li Shan near the present day city of Xian. The tomb itself has never been
breached, but descriptions from the time describe the interior as having a sarcophagus
that floated in a river of mercury, surrounded by a miniature representation of the world
Qin Shihuang ruled and a ceiling depicting the constellations associated with the Chinese
5
tradition.10 In 1974 a Chinese peasant was digging a well when he unearthed the first
Terra-cotta soldier, a life size realistic representation of a Qin dynasty soldier. Since
then, three pits have been excavated with the total number of soldiers exceeding 7500,
including charioteers, cavalrymen, infantry and officers.11 These Terra-cotta soldiers
were meant to guard the emperor in the afterlife and essentially served the same purpose
that human sacrifice once had in the Shang period, which (as previously stated) was to
assist the dead in the afterlife. Principles of Feng Shui figure prominently in the tomb of
Qin Shihuang. For example, the burial mound has three levels or tiers that represent
Earth, human beings and the sky, with the apex of the mound symbolizing Heaven.12 The
three levels symbolize the interplay between Humanity, Heaven and Earth, implying that
harmony between these three realms could only be attained through the emperor, who
was regarded as the “father and mother” of the people. The base of the mound is square
with each side facing one of the cardinal directions, as are the sides with the main axis of
this facing north-south,13 in accordance with Feng Shui principles.
As suggested above, the role of the emperor was one of a cosmological link
between Heaven and Earth. In the Confucian text Chung-yung (The Doctrine of the
Mean), the ultimate goal of self-cultivation is to form a “trinity” with Heaven and Earth.
The Emperor thus became the medium through which humans could link with the
heavenly realm; in essence, he became a kind of living god on Earth.
10
Paul Krupp, Echoes of the Ancient Skies: The Astronomy of Lost Civilizations (New York: Harper and
Row, 1983), p. 109. As recorded in the Shih-Chi (Records of the Grand Historian), the first comprehensive
history of China, written by Sima Qian (c. 145-187 B.C.E.).
11
Ibid., p. 110.
12
Ibid., p. 111.
13
Ibid., p. 111.
6
The fundamental aspects of funerary practices have not changed that much
throughout recorded Chinese history. Essential articles were included in the graves of the
deceased, emperors and commoners alike, to assist them in the afterlife. This was not
only true during the Shang era and Qin eras, but remained true some fifteen hundred
years later during the Ming Dynasty, where over three thousand artifacts were discovered
buried with the emperors, including imperial robes, musical instruments and gold and
silver utensils.
The Ming Tombs were situated just outside the city of Beijing; the site contains
the remains of thirteen Chinese Emperors who ruled from the fourteenth to the
seventeenth centuries C.E. The tombs themselves are located in accordance with the
principles of geomancy, scattered over an area that is approximately forty square
kilometers, surrounded by mountains on three sides and open to the Beijing plain to the
South. The road leading to the tomb is guarded by Tiger Hill on the left and Dragon Hill
on the right. The ground was considered sacred and was not allowed to be cultivated, nor
was anyone allowed to enter on horseback. The deceased were carried along a road
known as shendao or “the way of the spirit” to the gate of the main tomb. I visited the
Ming tombs myself and was impressed by the architectural layout of the tombs, a series
of interconnected vaulted rooms that (disappointingly) had been cleaned out of all
archeological finds. Some of these artifacts were quite spectacular, including the
“Phoenix Crown,” which belonged to the Empress Xiaoduan. The Empress Xiaoduan
was the first wife of the Emperor Shenzong, also known as the Wanli Emperor (r. 15721620). The Emperor, the Empress and his royal concubine, the Empress Xiaojing, were
buried in what is known as the “Dingling Tomb”. The Phoenix Crown itself was worn by
7
the empress, secondary consorts, and imperial concubines at their investiture. The frame
of the crown was constructed of lacquered bamboo strips. The body of the crown was
inlaid with 57 rubies, 58 sapphires and 4414 pearls. On the top were nine gold dragons
and nine phoenixes with a feather appliqué. The tomb also contained various jade and
porcelain articles that were essential to imperial life. The interior of the tombs contained
vaulted ceilings which would have been a representation of the heavens, similar to the
reported interior of Qin Shihuang’s tomb in Xian.
Chinese funerary practices have changed somewhat throughout the centuries but
in some ways they hearken eerily to the past; just as one can be linked several generations
back by his D.N.A, so can present day funerary practices be linked back to the ancient
past. When death occurs in China it means that one becomes part of the ancestral cult.
According to a popular Chinese view, the circle of life was predestined and after death
one’s soul would go to another world—“the nether world.” King Yian Luo ruled the
nether world, which resembled the Earth, and kept a “birth and death notebook” in which
were listed the birth and death dates of everyone.14 When it came time for a person to
leave this earthly plane, the King would erase the name from the list and that person’s
death commenced at once. In light of this predetermination, elderly people always
prepared the burial clothing and a coffin for their own funeral.15
The funeral clothing was meticulously constructed with regard to shape
color and material. Preference was given to hand spun cloths because it was considered
to bring luck to the deceased. Any color was acceptable, except black. In many regions
throughout China cloth could not be made from sheep, oxen, or horses, because of the
14
15
Shuang Li, “The Funeral and Chinese Culture” in Journal of Popular Culture 27.2 (1993): 113.
Ibid., p. 114.
8
fear that the person would be reincarnated into that animal in the next life. It was also
important that the funeral clothing cover all of the fingers of the dead, otherwise the
deceased progeny was doomed to poverty.16 According to the Buddhist conception of
reincarnation, the actual funeral clothing was called “Shou You”, (which means, “the
clothes of a long lived person”). If one was charitable in life, that person would be
respectable in the next life and conversely, if that person was evil, he would become poor
and impoverished.17 (Shaung, 114).
The coffin in Chinese is called guan cai; coffins were generally cubical and
wooden in nature in ancient China, though they could be made of gold, if one could
afford it, as was the case with ancient Chinese Emperors. Coffin makers were often well
treated by their solicitors, receiving food, wages and gifts, including the leftover wood
which was often considered a precious commodity. Once the coffin was finished, it was
paraded around the village by the family, who shouted, “Here comes an official position,
here comes wealth and population.” After this the coffin was placed in the corner of the
reception hall where it was not to be moved until death, under punishment of bad luck.
One of the main aspects of the Chinese funeral is finding a suitable graveyard,
which were governed by Feng Shui regulations (which were discussed in some detail
above). This set of regulations was somewhat extensive and was often utilized by
witches and fortune tellers who undertook the task of explaining to the family the ideal
place for the deceased to be buried. “Diviners” typically used cosmological principles
such as yin-yang, the Five Elements and the Eight Trigrams, drawing as well on classic
16
17
Ibid., p. 114.
Ibid., p. 114.
9
Chinese texts such as the Zhou Yi (a.k.a. the Yijing) to determine a suitable burial site.18
Some used Buddhist ideas, but all of their theories were interdispersed with superstitions.
The claim of Fengshui that purported to bless the progeny of the deceased (if done
correctly) was also used as a means of generating loyalty to the throne in China. Since the
ruler was considered the father of the land it wasn’t a far stretch to associate “venerating
the land” with “loyalty to the throne.”19
The relationship between ancient and modern times can be seen in the activities
surrounding the encoffining. During the encoffining, Taoist or Buddhist priests were
called in to carry out the appropriate ceremony to ensure that the dead would be happy in
the nether world. During the ceremony, paper goats and paper horses were burnt so that
the dead would have enough meat to eat in the nether world, though more recently people
have even gotten into the practice of burning paper television sets, refrigerators, cell
phones, Mah-Jong tiles, passports, and of course money in order to make the afterlife a
little more enjoyable. This can be seen to resonate through the centuries, from the actual
human and animal sacrifices of the Shang period, to there terra-cotta counterparts in the
Qin period, to the rich offerings that were originally buried in the Ming Tombs, and
ultimately to the paper representations that have been adapted for the modern era.
Although the instrumentality has changed, the ideology has basically remained the same.
In order for the body to be carried out of the house, weather conditions had to be
taken into account; rain falling on the coffin implied reduced offspring in the future,
whereas good weather and snow was a sign of good luck. The more people who attended
the funeral procession, the better, with all relatives expected to be present. In the funeral
18
19
Ibid., p. 115.
Ibid., p. 115.
10
all of the deceased children were required to carry a “crying over death stick,” which was
a wooden stick wrapped with sheets of white paper. The cane symbolized the level of
bereavement of the mourners, who were then required to support themselves with the
cane because they were so grief stricken.20 If one could afford it, personal mourners
who would wail and cry to the point of collapse were for hire. It was also necessary to
make as much noise as possible, with the lighting of firecrackers and the blowing of
trumpets. After this more firecrackers were set off to encourage the dead to proceed to the
netherworld. Before the coffin could be lowered into the ground, straw was set on fire at
the bottom of the hole so that the deceased would be warm there21, and last but not least
the coffin was laid parallel to the ground, to ward off bad luck.
It was during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (771-256 B.C.E.) that the duration of
mourning was firmly established. There were five different classifications for the period
of mourning; the first class was for the closest relatives, who were required to mourn for
twenty-five months (traditionally known as the “three-year mourning period”), abstaining
from song, dance, sex and revelry. The term for mourning for the second class was less
than three years, nine months for the third, five months for the fourth and three months
for the fifth. These practices were already firmly in place by Confucius’s time.22,
Confucianism extolled that funerals were a means of restricting desires by following
rites. Confucianism was expressed through funerary practices by the idea of filial
obligation and loyalty to the emperor. Taoist beliefs, on the other hand, called for a
simple funeral, for the salient reason that one’s fate in the afterlife was based on whether
or not he had tried to live a moral life while he was in the flesh. Chinese funerals are
20
Ibid., p. 117.
Ibid., p. 117.
22
Ibid., p. 118.
21
11
primarily Confucian, though they often incorporate Buddhist and Taoist aspects as well.23
In this sense, Chinese funerary practices represent a microcosm of Chinese religious
beliefs: Confucianism plays the most important role with regard to foundational social
customs, while Buddhism and Taoism provide sectarian variations on primary themes.
Chinese funerary practices have evolved over the past several millennia, from the
“oracle bones” and human sacrifices of the Shang period, to the Terra-cotta warriors of
Qin Shihuang, to the elaborate tombs of the Ming dynasty. However, the religious and
cultural implications of the funerary practices themselves have remained remarkably
stable throughout this long period of time. Human sacrifices have given way to terracotta, which has now become paper, but the significance of these articles has remained
consistent: they all are intended to assist the dead in the afterlife.
The basic religious beliefs that permeated Chinese society throughout the ages
have remained much the same to this day, albeit under different guises. Ancestor
worship, under the continuing influence of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism,
remains an important element of contemporary Chinese religious practices. Needless to
say, Chinese funerary practices are bound to evolve in the future, but based on the
evidence examined in this paper it would seem likely that the underlying principles will
remain the same.
23
Ibid., p.119.
12
Bibliography
Krupp, P. Echoes of the Ancient Skies: The Astronomy of Lost Civilizations. New York:
Harper and Row, 1983.
Ropp Paul S. Heritage of China: Contemporary Perspectives on Chinese Civilization.
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.
Li, Shuang, “The Funeral and Chinese Culture”. In The Journal of Popular Culture, Vol.
27 Issue 2, pp. 113-121. 1993
Thompson, Laurence G. The Chinese Way in Religion. Encino, CA: Dickenson
Publishing: 1973.
Thompson, Laurence G. . Chinese Religion: An Introduction. Fourth Edition. Belmont,
CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 1989.