By
Beth Green
Nope, the armband marked a period of mourning for his great-grandfather—kind of like the Victorian English used to do with their black clothing that subtly, over time, mellowed in hue to grays, violets and finally other colors.
During
the time I’ve lived in China, I’ve been honored to take part in
baby-naming ceremonies, birthday parties, festivals, graduations and
a wedding. It seems that the only way-point marker
on the trail of life that
I haven’t seen first-hand here—thank goodness!—is a funeral. When
Westerners think of funerals in China, they might imagine the scenes
in Amy Tan’s books or movie adaptations. These and other books set
in Chinese culture evoke professional mourners, wakes and plenty of
rituals.
Incense burning in a temple atop Mt. Emei, Sichuan Province, China. |
My
students in China, though most of them have a superstitious dislike
of talking about death, have shared a little information with me
too—I remember one embarrassing (for me) incident well.
A pre-teenage boy, who had just transferred into my class and who had been giving me plenty of attitude, came to our English lesson one day with a green cloth armband pinned to his sleeve. Trying to get on his good side, I asked him if it was a new fashion trend.
A pre-teenage boy, who had just transferred into my class and who had been giving me plenty of attitude, came to our English lesson one day with a green cloth armband pinned to his sleeve. Trying to get on his good side, I asked him if it was a new fashion trend.
Nope, the armband marked a period of mourning for his great-grandfather—kind of like the Victorian English used to do with their black clothing that subtly, over time, mellowed in hue to grays, violets and finally other colors.
People
attending funerals in China wear somber colors, black, blue, or,
sometimes white. I have seen gatherings outside restaurants or homes
where all of the participants were wearing white robes and white head
coverings. At first—being Western—I thought it might be a
wedding. My students, when I asked, though told me it was more likely
a funeral.
An ancestor hall, where families can pay respects to departed loved ones, in Hong Kong. |
In
Guizhou Province, which is predominantly rural and which seems to
have more people following tradition than in the city where I now
live, I’d often see huge wheels of flowers set on the sidewalks. My
co-workers explained that wreaths are an important tribute to the
deceased and his or her family.
These
modern anecdotes aside, I’m probably more knowledgeable about some
ancient Chinese funeral customs, seeing that on my travels around
China I'm about 200 times more likely to choose to visit a tomb
complex or museum than a shopping mall.
One
of China’s most famous tourist attractions, is, after all, a big
monument to funeral traditions. The Terracotta Warriors, the emperor
Qin Shi Huang’s army of life-size pottery soldiers, were buried so
they could accompany him to the afterlife. However, it wasn’t only
emperors who used have pottery replicas of things buried with them
when they died. In museums throughout China visitors today can see
pottery wares that were made specifically to represent after-life
wealth. My favorite of these is in the Shaanxi Provincial Museum in
Xian, near the Terracotta Warriors. It’s a small addendum to a
terracotta mansion that some wealthy homeowner wanted take with him.
Indeed, it’s a miniature outhouse, economically placed above a
pigpen so that nothing is wasted.
An economical outhouse for the afterlife. Shaanxi Provincial Museum, Xi'an, China. |
Many
visitors to China feel that stepping into the airplane hangar-esque
Pit One at the Terracotta Warriors is the epoch of their trip. This
and the Ming Dynasty tombs near Beijing are some of the first things
tourists usually learn about when they are planning a trip to China.
But a tomb complex that not many visitors make it to is the “Chinese
Pyramids.”
The foundations of the Western Xia Royal Tombs, near Yinchuan, Ningxia Province, China. |
This
site is found in Ningxia Province. Years ago, this area was was the
cradle of the Western Xia Dynasty (1038-1227 AD). The Xia rulers, who
were often involved in battles with the Mongols, created opulent
mausoleums for their final resting places. They consisted of palatial
gardens; replete with underground chambers, colorful ceramics and
woodworking and mighty watchtowers to protect them. The Mongols did
eventually besiege and sack the Western Xia capital, and destroyed
the mausoleums as well. Now visitors can only see the packed-earth
foundations, which rise above the surrounding dry earth in pyramidal
mounds. Like many other extinct cultures, the Western Xia are now
understood primarily by what they left behind, by what they buried at
their funerals.
Wow, I never knew about the "Chinese Pyramids." Reading this blog is making me antsy for getting back to traveling!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Gigi! Ningxia Province is not often visited by foreign tourists and has a lot of interesting sites, not only the 'pyramids.' :)
ReplyDelete