Why people burn money at funerals in China (8 photos)

Funerary goods are often found during excavations of ancient graves. It can be both food and furniture, household utensils, jewelry, military equipment and even sacrificed household servants or animals. Its purpose is to facilitate the afterlife for the deceased. And on In the East there is a very interesting custom, a kind of analogue burial of grave goods.





There is money that cannot be paid in the store, it is not accepted by the bank. And it's not "fun bank tickets". These banknotes are in use only in the underworld. They are also called "hell money" and they are released specifically for funeral rites. They are made from special impregnated incense paper used in ritual ceremonies.



Hell money in the form of gadgets

Hell money can be of various forms - in the form of cellular telephones, houses, bank cards, cars, or servant dolls deceased. There is hellish money with the image of your favorite actors, actresses, frames from films.



An ancient technique for making hellish money is called "zhizha". Hell papers were popular in ancient China, replacing human sacrifice.

"Zhizha" eventually gave way to industrial production ritual banknotes, because the demand for them was just crazy, and not one craftsman could not cope with it.

Despite the development of progress, the custom has not gone anywhere and that's it. is also relevant. In Taiwan alone, it is annually burned in temples paper figures worth hundreds of millions of dollars.



In the form of a rich estate

In China, there are banknotes that the locals call Ming, Yinxi or Yin. They are burned as an offering so that the deceased has peaceful afterlife. Essentially, the afterlife in China is atonement for the bad done in life, designed to purify the soul already for further regeneration. "Purge" is very severe: first souls are judged by the Lord of the Earthly Court Yama, then the deceased or are sent to heaven, or one of 18 levels to get the corresponding punishment. The judge determines the punishment based on the types of crimes. This maybe cooking in boiling oil, and decapitation, or even cutting in half. And all this lasts almost forever.

And when the sins are finally atoned for, the soul will have to drink the Tea of the five flavors of oblivion.



This seagull erases the memory and prepares the soul for the next reincarnation. Being in something like purgatory is hell if the man did not lead a righteous life. This is where the tradition of burning began. money to soften the judge or somehow console the sufferer. Easier saying hellish money is for bribery.

Banknotes are usually either burned in a small clay pot or placed in a coffin.



This custom exists in Taiwan, Vietnam, China, Thailand, South Korea, and Japan.

By the way, the Chinese authorities periodically try to cancel this tradition: hell money paper is quite expensive and is considered a sign luxury, toxic substances are released into the air, and in the end - the custom of hellish money has long since become a relic of the past and a superstition.

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