Funeral ritual in Japan. Funeral traditions of Japan Cremation in Japan

Japan is a country of amazing traditions. In Japanese culture, medieval morals are paradoxically combined with a passion for the total use of high technology in all spheres of life. The customs of modern Japanese are built around ancient secular traditions, as well as around two religions - Buddhism and Shintoism (an ancient pagan faith). About 80% of the country's residents claim to profess both religions, which looks strange in the eyes of representatives of other cultures. This is largely why Japanese rituals seem so unusual to foreigners.

The Japanese funeral is perhaps the most unusual of these rituals, as death in Japan is associated with a whole range of traditions and ceremonies.

Preparation for burial

Immediately after death, the body of the deceased is prepared for burial. The lips of the deceased are supposed to be moistened with water, and a special knife is placed on his chest, which is believed to drive away evil spirits. A small table decorated with flowers and a scented candle is placed near the bed of the deceased. If the family of the deceased has a Buddhist or Shinto altar, it is covered with white paper - it is believed that this protects the deceased from evil spirits.

The body of the deceased is washed, after which funeral makeup is applied. Women are usually buried in a kimono, and men in a business suit. The deceased's favorite things and six coins are placed in the coffin. According to legends, the money is the payment for crossing the river of the dead Sanzu.

Funeral service in Japanese

The funeral service is the first ceremonial part of a Japanese funeral. It is usually held in Buddhist temples. If the deceased was a Buddhist, then at the ceremony a Buddhist priest reads sutras, and those bidding farewell come with juju beads. The funeral service ends when the priest finishes reading the sutra.

It is customary to come to a funeral ceremony in strict black clothes. Women wear a black dress or kimono, men a black suit, black tie and white shirt.

Family members sit next to the coffin with the body of the deceased, the rest of the ceremony participants sit at a distance. Everyone present must burn the ceremonial incense three times.

Giving mourning money

At a funeral service, it is customary to give money to the family of the deceased. Usually they are brought in a special envelope decorated with mourning flowers. The amount inside the envelope depends on how close the guest was with the deceased and how wealthy the guest is. At the end of the ceremony, the relatives of the deceased present the remaining participants with money in return. This gift is usually between a quarter and half of the amount given by the guest.

Farewell in Japanese

Farewell to the deceased takes place the day after the funeral service. It is also held in a Buddhist temple. This is the last opportunity to say goodbye to a person, and many guests place flowers on the shoulders and head of the deceased as a sign of grief.

As with funeral services, farewells in Japan are accompanied by reading Buddhist sutras and smoking incense. As part of the ceremony, the priest gives the deceased a new name. It is designed to protect the deceased from returning - if someone from the world of the living calls him.

At the end of the ceremony, the coffin with the body of the deceased is closed, loaded onto a hearse and taken to the crematorium.

Cremation in Japan

Cremation is the most common method of burial in Japan, chosen by more than 95% of the country's residents. Relatives of the deceased watch in silence as the body of the deceased is sent into the crematorium oven. Then they leave the funeral hall and return 2 hours later to pick up the ashes.

Ceremony of placing ashes in an urn

The transfer of ashes to the urn should also take place in the form of a ceremony. Two close relatives transfer the ashes of the deceased to the urn using large metal sticks. First, they lay the ashes of the lower part of the body and finish with the upper one - it is believed that the position of the remains in the urn should in no case be upside down. This is the only ceremony in Japanese culture in which it is considered acceptable and proper to pass something to another person with chopsticks.

Burial in Japan

After the ashes are transferred to an urn, the remains of the deceased are buried in one of the Japanese cemeteries in a family burial plot, or in a grave on a corporate plot.

The name of the living person on the tombstone

On family tombstones, the name of the deceased and his spouse are often immediately written, even if she is still alive. To emphasize that the person is still alive, red paint is applied over the engraving. When the deceased's spouse dies, her ashes are placed in an existing grave and the paint is washed off.

Corporate burials

Corporate burials are reserved for company employees; most often middle and senior managers are buried in them. Tombstones can be decorated with the company logo, or made in the form of its products. Often such burials are carried out at the expense of the organization. To be buried in a grave provided by the company is a great honor and recognition of the services of the deceased. Some of these burials are adjacent to historical crypts and sarcophagi, which contain the remains of medieval Japanese samurai, daimyo and shoguns.

Ancestor cult

Ancestor worship is an important part of Japanese beliefs. Every family has an altar dedicated to their deceased ancestors. It is believed that the deceased remains in the family, turning into the patron of his relatives.

Japanese funeral – 7th and 49th day

It is customary to commemorate the deceased on the 7th and 49th days after death. This is due to the fact that in Japanese the number seven is consonant with the word “death”, and therefore is considered special. However, in some regions of the country these dates may differ.

Memorial Days

Subsequently, the memory of the deceased is honored four times a year: on the Obon holiday (the day of universal remembrance of the dead), the New Year and on the days of the equinox.

On this day, traditional treats or favorite dishes of the deceased are brought to the family altar. On Memorial Day, friends of the deceased can send his family food to prepare this meal.

For the Japanese, the deceased leaves home only when his grandchildren have been buried. After this, he joins the spirits who patronize the entire family. Until this happens, the relatives of the deceased turn to the family altar to share their experiences, joys and hardships with the deceased.

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Death and funeral in Japan

The majority of the Japanese profess Buddhism and believe in obligatory samsara, that is, the transmigration of the souls of the dead to one of the 6 worlds. Buddhist views and traditions thus influenced Japanese funeral rites.

He was also influenced by the traditional Japanese religion of Shintoism, which deified nature and divided everything into pure and impure. From his point of view, death was perceived as something extremely unclean. Therefore, the deceased himself must be cleansed, as well as the funeral participants after the ceremony.

Death

In Japan, the loss of loved ones is perceived as a bereavement (despite the belief that the spirit of the deceased will be incarnated in a new life). Therefore, grieving, including publicly, and even crying is considered commonplace. However, the Japanese still do not express very strong feelings in connection with the death of their loved ones due to the restraint that national cultural codes call for.

Immediately after someone in the family dies, relatives invite a Buddhist priest and a representative of the funeral agency to the house. The first must take care of the soul, the second - about the body of the deceased. But even before this, it is necessary to carry out an ancient ritual called the “posthumous sip of water” (matsugo no mizu).

To do this, all family members in turn (which is organized according to the closest relationship of each of those present) must wipe the mouth of the deceased with cotton wool wrapped around a chopstick and soaked in water. Next you need to cleanse the body. Previously, this was done by relatives, now they are most often helped by an agency representative, and sometimes relatives do not take part in the washing at all.

First, the body is washed with hot water, then wiped with alcohol or another disinfectant liquid. Cotton swabs soaked in alcohol or sake are placed in the mouth, nostrils and anus to prevent waste from leaking out (it is not customary to embalm bodies in Japan).

Clothes

deceased in different ways. Often, a traditional kimono is chosen for this - kekatabira. Previously, it was always white (that is, a mourning color) with sutras written on it. Now white is invariably used for women's and children's funeral clothing, while a man can also be buried in a black suit with a white shirt or a colored kimono.

They dress the deceased in mortal clothing according to the Sakigoto tradition - that is, in a different (namely reverse) order than the living are usually dressed. For example, buttons are fastened from bottom to top, kimonos are wrapped from right to left, etc. All this is done to separate the world of the dead from the world of the living. Leg warmers are usually put on the feet of the deceased (only with a kimono, and socks with a suit) and straw slippers. In this form, the deceased is placed in a coffin on a previously spread white linen. Women are covered with a scarf and a white blanket, and a quilted blanket is thrown over the male body, which must be turned inside out. The face of the deceased is painted and covered with a white cloth, a rosary is placed in his hands, and a cloth bag is put over his shoulder.

All these clothes and paraphernalia seem to indicate that a person is prepared for a pilgrimage to become a Buddha. By the way, in Japan, when talking about someone’s death, they use the allegory “became Buddha.” And to scare away evil spirits, a knife is placed in the coffin: at the head or on the chest.

Further, according to the unchanged Japanese custom, the place at the coffin is decorated in a special way, which is placed next to the family altar with the head facing north, and the face of the deceased should be turned towards the west. At the head of the coffin, an inverted screen and a special table are placed with incense and other incense burners, flowers, water and rice in a cup with chopsticks stuck vertically into it. Sometimes you can see rice buns on it. A painted portrait of the deceased is hung on the wall. However, the Japanese never use photographic images at funerals.

Funeral services

The Japanese take 2 days. In the evening of the 1st day, a so-called short funeral vigil is held (it lasts 3 hours), before which the deceased is given a posthumous name (kaime). This name is needed because, according to faith, the deceased becomes a disciple of the Buddha, a monk, who must now be called differently than in life. Everyone who wants to express condolences to the family comes to the first service.

At the end of it, it is customary to read telegrams of condolences and make speeches about the deceased, and then a short wake is organized. There is no meat on the table during them, but they are always treated to sweets, tea and sake. At night in modern Japan, you don’t have to be near the body. On the 2nd day, a memorial service is held in the temple before the funeral.

Funeral

in Japan it is usually prescribed on the second day after the death of a person. It is considered a good sign if a lot of people come to them. The clothes of mourners are necessarily black kimonos, dresses and suits. Those who come bring money in envelopes made of special paper with a silver pattern. They are tied with black thin ribbons.

The final farewell to the deceased takes place after the church service at the altar, after which the coffin is nailed shut (often by relatives), placed in a decorated hearse, and the funeral procession leaves for the crematorium.

Cremation

The most popular method of burial in Japan. When it is carried out, the mourners in the next room should tell each other funny and touching incidents from the life of the deceased.

After the allotted time for cremation has expired (usually it takes two to two and a half hours), crematorium employees take out the ashes on a tray, from which relatives transfer them into the urn with chopsticks.

First, they try to select the bones of the legs, then the pelvis and spine, then the arms and head. Subsequently, the urn with the ashes is embedded in a monument in the cemetery, which stands on the grave with family graves.

Japanese monuments

always made of stone and, if possible, massive and beautiful. There are no portraits on them - only names. But the shapes of stones can be very diverse, including sculptural compositions and complex memorial structures.

Remember

The Japanese usually celebrate their dead on the days of the spring and autumn equinox. This is usually March 20 or 21 and September 23 or 24.

These days, everyone who can tries to visit and put in order the ancestral graves and light candles and lanterns on them in order to illuminate the path for the souls of their ancestors in the afterlife. In some provinces, a similar holiday of the dead is celebrated in April.

Death and funeral in Japan

The majority of the Japanese profess Buddhism and believe in obligatory samsara, that is, the transmigration of the souls of the dead to one of the 6 worlds. Buddhist views and traditions thus influenced Japanese funeral rites.

He was also influenced by the traditional Japanese religion of Shintoism, which deified nature and divided everything into pure and impure. From his point of view, death was perceived as something extremely unclean. Therefore, the deceased himself must be cleansed, as well as the funeral participants after the ceremony.

Death

In Japan, the loss of loved ones is perceived as a bereavement (despite the belief that the spirit of the deceased will be incarnated in a new life). Therefore, grieving, including publicly, and even crying is considered commonplace. However, the Japanese still do not express very strong feelings in connection with the death of their loved ones due to the restraint that national cultural codes call for.

Immediately after someone in the family dies, relatives invite a Buddhist priest and a representative of the funeral agency to the house. The first must take care of the soul, the second - about the body of the deceased. But even before this, it is necessary to carry out an ancient ritual called the “posthumous sip of water” (matsugo no mizu).

To do this, all family members in turn (which is organized according to the closest relationship of each of those present) must wipe the mouth of the deceased with cotton wool wrapped around a chopstick and soaked in water. Next you need to cleanse the body. Previously, this was done by relatives, now they are most often helped by an agency representative, and sometimes relatives do not take part in the washing at all.

First, the body is washed with hot water, then wiped with alcohol or another disinfectant liquid. Cotton swabs soaked in alcohol or sake are placed in the mouth, nostrils and anus to prevent waste from leaking out (it is not customary to embalm bodies in Japan).

Clothes

deceased in different ways. Often, a traditional kimono is chosen for this - kekatabira. Previously, it was always white (that is, a mourning color) with sutras written on it. Now white is invariably used for women's and children's funeral clothing, while a man can also be buried in a black suit with a white shirt or a colored kimono.

They dress the deceased in mortal clothing according to the Sakigoto tradition - that is, in a different (namely reverse) order than the living are usually dressed. For example, buttons are fastened from bottom to top, kimonos are wrapped from right to left, etc. All this is done to separate the world of the dead from the world of the living. Leg warmers are usually put on the feet of the deceased (only with a kimono, and socks with a suit) and straw slippers. In this form, the deceased is placed in a coffin on a previously spread white linen. Women are covered with a scarf and a white blanket, and a quilted blanket is thrown over the male body, which must be turned inside out. The face of the deceased is painted and covered with a white cloth, a rosary is placed in his hands, and a cloth bag is put over his shoulder.

All these clothes and paraphernalia seem to indicate that a person is prepared for a pilgrimage to become a Buddha. By the way, in Japan, when talking about someone’s death, they use the allegory “became Buddha.” And to scare away evil spirits, a knife is placed in the coffin: at the head or on the chest.

Further, according to the unchanged Japanese custom, the place at the coffin is decorated in a special way, which is placed next to the family altar with the head facing north, and the face of the deceased should be turned towards the west. At the head of the coffin, an inverted screen and a special table are placed with incense and other incense burners, flowers, water and rice in a cup with chopsticks stuck vertically into it. Sometimes you can see rice buns on it. A painted portrait of the deceased is hung on the wall. However, the Japanese never use photographic images at funerals.

Funeral services

The Japanese take 2 days. In the evening of the 1st day, a so-called short funeral vigil is held (it lasts 3 hours), before which the deceased is given a posthumous name (kaime). This name is needed because, according to faith, the deceased becomes a disciple of the Buddha, a monk, who must now be called differently than in life. Everyone who wants to express condolences to the family comes to the first service.

At the end of it, it is customary to read telegrams of condolences and make speeches about the deceased, and then a short wake is organized. There is no meat on the table during them, but they are always treated to sweets, tea and sake. At night in modern Japan, you don’t have to be near the body. On the 2nd day, a memorial service is held in the temple before the funeral.

Funeral

in Japan it is usually prescribed on the second day after the death of a person. It is considered a good sign if a lot of people come to them. The clothes of mourners are necessarily black kimonos, dresses and suits. Those who come bring money in envelopes made of special paper with a silver pattern. They are tied with black thin ribbons.

The final farewell to the deceased takes place after the church service at the altar, after which the coffin is nailed shut (often by relatives), placed in a decorated hearse, and the funeral procession leaves for the crematorium.

Cremation

The most popular method of burial in Japan. When it is carried out, the mourners in the next room should tell each other funny and touching incidents from the life of the deceased.

After the allotted time for cremation has expired (usually it takes two to two and a half hours), crematorium employees take out the ashes on a tray, from which relatives transfer them into the urn with chopsticks.

First, they try to select the bones of the legs, then the pelvis and spine, then the arms and head. Subsequently, the urn with the ashes is embedded in a monument in the cemetery, which stands on the grave with family graves.

Japanese monuments

always made of stone and, if possible, massive and beautiful. There are no portraits on them - only names. But the shapes of stones can be very diverse, including sculptural compositions and complex memorial structures.

Remember

The Japanese usually celebrate their dead on the days of the spring and autumn equinox. This is usually March 20 or 21 and September 23 or 24.

These days, everyone who can tries to visit and put in order the ancestral graves and light candles and lanterns on them in order to illuminate the path for the souls of their ancestors in the afterlife. In some provinces, a similar holiday of the dead is celebrated in April.

Japan is a country of amazing traditions. In Japanese culture, medieval morals are paradoxically combined with a passion for the total use of high technology in all spheres of life. The customs of modern Japanese are built around ancient secular traditions, as well as around two religions - Buddhism and Shintoism (an ancient pagan faith). About 80% of the country's residents claim to profess both religions, which looks strange in the eyes of representatives of other cultures. This is largely why Japanese rituals seem so unusual to foreigners.

The Japanese funeral is perhaps the most unusual of these rituals, as death in Japan is associated with a whole range of traditions and ceremonies.

Preparation for burial

Immediately after death, the body of the deceased is prepared for burial. The lips of the deceased are supposed to be moistened with water, and a special knife is placed on his chest, which is believed to drive away evil spirits. A small table decorated with flowers and a scented candle is placed near the bed of the deceased. If the family of the deceased has a Buddhist or Shinto altar, it is covered with white paper - it is believed that this protects the deceased from evil spirits.

The body of the deceased is washed, after which funeral makeup is applied. Women are usually buried in a kimono, and men in a business suit. The deceased's favorite things and six coins are placed in the coffin. According to legends, the money is the payment for crossing the river of the dead Sanzu.

Funeral service in Japanese

The funeral service is the first ceremonial part of a Japanese funeral. It is usually held in Buddhist temples. If the deceased was a Buddhist, then at the ceremony a Buddhist priest reads sutras, and those bidding farewell come with juju beads. The funeral service ends when the priest finishes reading the sutra.

It is customary to come to a funeral ceremony in strict black clothes. Women wear a black dress or kimono, men a black suit, black tie and white shirt.

Family members sit next to the coffin with the body of the deceased, the rest of the ceremony participants sit at a distance. Everyone present must burn the ceremonial incense three times.

Giving mourning money

At a funeral service, it is customary to give money to the family of the deceased. Usually they are brought in a special envelope decorated with mourning flowers. The amount inside the envelope depends on how close the guest was with the deceased and how wealthy the guest is. At the end of the ceremony, the relatives of the deceased present the remaining participants with money in return. This gift is usually between a quarter and half of the amount given by the guest.

Farewell in Japanese

Farewell to the deceased takes place the day after the funeral service. It is also held in a Buddhist temple. This is the last opportunity to say goodbye to a person, and many guests place flowers on the shoulders and head of the deceased as a sign of grief.

As with funeral services, farewells in Japan are accompanied by reading Buddhist sutras and smoking incense. As part of the ceremony, the priest gives the deceased a new name. It is designed to protect the deceased from returning - if someone from the world of the living calls him.

At the end of the ceremony, the coffin with the body of the deceased is closed, loaded onto a hearse and taken to the crematorium.

Cremation in Japan

Cremation is the most common method of burial in Japan, chosen by more than 95% of the country's residents. Relatives of the deceased watch in silence as the body of the deceased is sent into the crematorium oven. Then they leave the funeral hall and return 2 hours later to pick up the ashes.

Ceremony of placing ashes in an urn

The transfer of ashes to the urn should also take place in the form of a ceremony. Two close relatives transfer the ashes of the deceased to the urn using large metal sticks. First, they lay the ashes of the lower part of the body and finish with the upper one - it is believed that the position of the remains in the urn should in no case be upside down. This is the only ceremony in Japanese culture in which it is considered acceptable and proper to pass something to another person with chopsticks.

Burial in Japan

After the ashes are transferred to an urn, the remains of the deceased are buried in one of the Japanese cemeteries in a family burial plot, or in a grave on a corporate plot.

The name of the living person on the tombstone

On family tombstones, the name of the deceased and his spouse are often immediately written, even if she is still alive. To emphasize that the person is still alive, red paint is applied over the engraving. When the deceased's spouse dies, her ashes are placed in an existing grave and the paint is washed off.

Corporate burials

Corporate burials are reserved for company employees; most often middle and senior managers are buried in them. Tombstones can be decorated with the company logo, or made in the form of its products. Often such burials are carried out at the expense of the organization. To be buried in a grave provided by the company is a great honor and recognition of the services of the deceased. Some of these burials are adjacent to historical crypts and sarcophagi, which contain the remains of medieval Japanese samurai, daimyo and shoguns.

Ancestor cult

Ancestor worship is an important part of Japanese beliefs. Every family has an altar dedicated to their deceased ancestors. It is believed that the deceased remains in the family, turning into the patron of his relatives.

Japanese funeral – 7th and 49th day

It is customary to commemorate the deceased on the 7th and 49th days after death. This is due to the fact that in Japanese the number seven is consonant with the word “death”, and therefore is considered special. However, in some regions of the country these dates may differ.

Memorial Days

Subsequently, the memory of the deceased is honored four times a year: on the Obon holiday (the day of universal remembrance of the dead), the New Year and on the days of the equinox.

On this day, traditional treats or favorite dishes of the deceased are brought to the family altar. On Memorial Day, friends of the deceased can send his family food to prepare this meal.

For the Japanese, the deceased leaves home only when his grandchildren have been buried. After this, he joins the spirits who patronize the entire family. Until this happens, the relatives of the deceased turn to the family altar to share their experiences, joys and hardships with the deceased.

Funeral industry in Japan

Japan is a country where ancient traditions are intertwined with high-tech. This strange combination is also typical for the ritual sphere, because death has a special meaning in Japanese culture. The funeral industry in the Land of the Rising Sun is an interweaving of complex ancient rituals performed at exorbitant prices, with fierce competition and the technological race of funeral companies.

How do the Japanese organize funerals?

The general features of organizing a funeral in Japan are similar to other countries, but there are many more subtleties and complexities.

When loved ones are sure that a person has died, they begin to prepare for burial. One of the relatives takes upon himself the organization of the funeral - traditions say that this should be the eldest son of the deceased.

The funeral organizer must:

• notify the relatives of the deceased, his friends and colleagues;
• inform the deceased’s superiors about his death;
• notify the municipality, which will issue the death certificate;
• order funeral paraphernalia, sign an agreement with a funeral agency;
• arrange ceremonies with a local Buddhist or Shinto shrine;
• purchase a place in the cemetery or agree on storage of ashes with the monastery.

In more traditional families, there is a need to build or expand a family altar dedicated to deceased ancestors.

Funeral costs in Japan

Japan is a country with some of the highest funeral prices in the entire world. In recent years, the average cost of a funeral ranges from 20 to 25 thousand dollars (2.5-3 million yen). There are several reasons for such high prices:

• the high cost of places in cemeteries;
• inflated prices from most funeral agencies;
• the requirements of tradition, according to which the funeral should be luxurious;
• the need to pay for the expensive services of cemetery workers and Buddhist monks (a total of about 1 million yen, $8,700).

Funeral market in Japan

For many years, funeral agencies in Japan enjoyed a special position. The death of a relative is not just tragic, but also a very important event in the life of a traditional Japanese family. During this period, the relatives of the deceased are not ready to delve into the nuances of organizing a funeral and bargain with agents. Many agents took advantage of these traditions and offered their services at greatly inflated prices.

In recent years, Japan's population has been declining. Mortality rates are quite high and will continue to rise as the baby boomer generation ages and dies. The number of Japanese deaths is expected to be 1.53 million in 2025. Against the backdrop of this demographic picture, Japan's ritual sector is also growing - in 2018, the funeral market amounted to 1.84 trillion yen, which is equal to $16 billion.

Along with the increase in mortality in Japan, the number of funeral homes has also increased. In 2018, there were more than 45,000 agencies operating in the Japanese market, that is, there is one agency for every 2,800 people. The number of Japanese who blindly trust ritual agents is also decreasing - more and more families are making balanced and informed decisions, carefully reading the contract offered to them or choosing an agency in advance.

Competition in the Japanese market is very high, which leads to the fact that funeral homes are forced to reduce prices, meet their clients halfway and build human relationships with the loved ones of the deceased. Many companies are adapting to the demands of the times and offering new high-tech services - befitting one of the most high-tech countries in the world.

Funeral Innovations

In a situation of fierce competition, increased demand for funeral services and the crazy pace of life in the metropolis, funeral companies have to adapt. At funeral industry exhibitions regularly held in Japan, you can get acquainted with the latest new products and innovations.

Almost no funeral in Japan is complete without a Buddhist ceremony. However, monasteries have difficulty coping with such loads; there are not enough monks for each funeral service and prices for their services are rising. Some companies are solving the problem with robots that imitate monks. They look surprisingly human, are dressed in Buddhist robes, are able to hold a conversation and read funeral sutras. An alternative solution is online broadcasts of Buddhist monks, when a clergyman attends a funeral and reads sutras remotely.

The Japanese are considered perhaps the most hard-working nation in the world - the working day of an employee of a Japanese company can last up to 20 hours. With such a schedule, it is difficult to find time to attend a funeral. Therefore, some cemeteries organize special stations through which you can convey your wishes and gifts to the family of the deceased without leaving your car.

The lifetime contract has come into use even among the most conservative Japanese

In addition to these unusual services, Japanese funeral services are introducing many important innovations. Here are some of them:

• the lifetime contract came into use even among the most conservative Japanese. Almost all elderly residents of the country plan their funeral in advance, order a coffin and give detailed instructions;
• QR codes are appearing on more and more tombstones. By scanning them, you can see photos and videos from the life of the deceased, his farewell address and obituary;
• The Japanese branch of Yahoo offers services for automatically deleting pages of the deceased on social networks, sending farewell letters by e-mail and creating online memorials dedicated to the deceased.

Japan is a country where funerals are conducted primarily according to Buddhist rites.

Preparing for a funeral in Japan

A certificate stating that the person has passed away is issued by the local municipality, and the death of the person is reported to his supervisor and relatives. As a rule, the eldest son of the deceased is responsible for organizing and conducting funerals in Japan. It is he who agrees with the temple on what date the ceremony will be scheduled, since there are certain days when funerals cannot be held. They are called tomobiks, and it is believed that if a funeral is held on this day, another death will occur.

Body preparation

First, a traditional ceremony is held, which has already become mandatory. The so-called “water ceremony” involves moistening the lips of the deceased with water. A small table is placed next to the bed where the deceased is located, and it is decorated with incense, flowers and candles. Some Japanese place a knife on the chest of their departed relative, the purpose of which is to protect themselves from evil spirits.

The body of the deceased is given a bath, and in order to plug the natural openings on the body of the deceased, a cloth such as cotton or gauze is used.

The clothes in which a Japanese person is buried are traditional and can differ only depending on the gender of the deceased. Men are buried in a kimono or a suit, and women are buried only in a kimono. Regardless of whether it is a man or a woman, traditional makeup is applied to the deceased.

Then, the body is placed in a coffin on dry ice, sandals, a white kimono and six coins are placed near this place. The Japanese believe that these moments will help the deceased person to become angry for crossing the Sandzi River. Among other things, the coffin of the deceased often contains things that the deceased loved during his lifetime. This could be candy, tobacco products or jewelry. After this, the coffin is placed on the altar in such a way that the head of the dead must be directed to the west or north.

Farewell to the dead of Japan

In order to see off a deceased family member, relative or friend on their last journey, guests come to the farewell ceremony wearing black clothes. Women have the option of wearing a black kimono or dress, while men typically choose a black suit, which is complemented by a tie of the same color and a white shirt. In the Japanese tradition, it is customary to express condolences financially, namely in this way: in a special envelope, which was previously decorated with black and silver flowers, money is transferred to the family in which the misfortune occurred.

Everyone who has gathered for the farewell ceremony sits next to the body of the deceased, and the Buddhist priest begins to read an excerpt from the sutra. In front of the place where the body of the deceased is located, incense is smoked three times by each member of his family. Guests also take part in this ritual, but do it in their own places. The end of the reading of the sutra marks the end of the funeral process. Everyone disperses and only the closest relatives remain to serve the vigil.

Typically, in Japan, a person is buried the day after the funeral service has been held. During the ceremony, the priest begins to read the sutra, and incense is burned. The deceased is also given a new Buddhist name, which is given to him so that when his earthly name is mentioned, the soul of the deceased will not be disturbed.

The ceremony ends like this: guests lay flowers on the shoulders and head of the deceased. After this, the coffin is placed in a decorative hearse, and the body itself is taken to the crematorium. The cremation process takes about an hour and a half, and the family of the deceased is allowed to be present during this process only at the beginning or end of the procedure.

The urn with ashes can either be immediately taken to the cemetery, or it can be left at home for a certain time.

In Japan, too, the most common form of burial is the family grave.

You can find information about all organizations providing funeral services in the cities of Belarus on the website of the Directory of Ritual Services