Chinese funerary practice of ball/pearl?
score:4
A song lyric from a modern western pop-band isn't the sort of place I would look for authoritative information about cultural practices in pre-communist China.
There are accounts of such practices in Chinese death rituals (in Singapore)
- A pearl, placed in the mouth to protect the body, or
- A coin to pay guardian spirits during the passage, or
- A grain of rice to provide sustenance
Historically, the majority of the Chinese population have been extremely poor rural peasants. I'd be surprised if pearls or mercury were within the means of any but a tiny wealthy elite.
Upvote:1
Apparently the Wikipedia article is likely wrong. http://ghanisquest.livejournal.com/82903.html
She delivers a few lines before a large, black pearl is inserted into her mouth, signifying her death. Before dying, however, she tells the boy that men are not permitted in the palace past dusk. link
and
Ancient Chinese believed that pearls were conceived in the brains of dragons. In imperial china, the black pearl was regarded as a symbol of wisdom. As such, it was guarded between the teeth of the dragon. link
Upvote:2
Śarīra is a tradition / belief referring to Buddhist relics, although in common usage it usually refers to pearl or crystal-like bead-shaped objects that are purportedly found among the cremated ashes of Buddhist spiritual masters.
More post
- 📝 Was Alexander the Great undefeated in every battle?
- 📝 How significant was poetry as mnemonic device in technical / philosophical / scientific texts in classical Rome and Greece?
- 📝 Did the citizens of US really back the declaration of war on Japanese Empire as it was implied by F.D. Roosevelt in his Pearl Harbor Speech?
- 📝 Who made this violent speech in the documentary De Nuremberg à Nuremberg?
- 📝 Maximum speed of communication prior to Trans-Atlantic Cable?
- 📝 Was there an export industry of papyrus from ancient Egypt?
- 📝 Did China ever consider a phonetic writing system?
- 📝 Have there been ruthless rulers who held on to power despite being blinded?
- 📝 Did the US threaten a nuclear strike to defend Israel in 1973?
- 📝 Could a nobleman / lord join the clergy in the middle ages?
- 📝 Where Can I Find Copies of the Richmond Enquirer?
- 📝 When did hanging emerge as a form of capital punishment?
- 📝 Why was the Le Chapelier law annulled in Belgium?
- 📝 Who is this monument near Huesca for?
- 📝 What containers were used for food prior to the industrial era?
- 📝 How did an immigrant become a citizen in the nineteenth century?
- 📝 Were British fears of Russia using Afghanistan as a staging post for an invasion of India unfounded?
- 📝 When is the crossed sword and baton alone? When does it appear with the crown?
- 📝 Why is it called the "Ottoman" Empire in English language?
- 📝 How would gender equality in WWI have affected UK population?
- 📝 How were large sums of money carried/transmitted prior to the 1940s or so?
- 📝 When and where was the term "nigra" used and what was its relation to "nigger"?
- 📝 Why did many US military designs start with letter M?
- 📝 Why did the French sell Louisiana?
- 📝 Plate armour worn by men-at-arms fighting on foot 1380-1415
- 📝 What was a "searcher" associated with a funeral in 1690?
- 📝 Info about frigates crossing the Atlantic in 1650
- 📝 How did AIDS generate losses? And what are the methods to compensate for them?
- 📝 In the "Christmas truce" of 1914 were there any football (soccer) matches between British and German troops?
- 📝 In the painting "Ariadne", by Arthur Streeton, why are the sails of the ship white?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Chinese funerary practice of ball/pearl?
- 📝 On 1941 Dec 7, could Japan have targeted the Panama Canal instead of Pearl Harbor in a surprise attack?
- 📝 How do ancient Chinese "mirrors" such as these in the National Museum function?
- 📝 Did Chinese emperors wear a rectangular hat with suspended gems?
- 📝 When did the practice of formally "declaring war" cease and why?
- 📝 Why didn't Japan take Pearl Harbor when they had the chance?
- 📝 Why aren't there any Chinese colonies?
- 📝 Why did the Republic of China retract its simplified Chinese characters?
- 📝 Which war games did Napoleon practice with his generals?
- 📝 When did challenging to a duel cease to be a practice in English culture?
- 📝 Why did the Chinese Nationalist party members go to the island of Taiwan and not to any other island?
- 📝 What are some Chinese sources testifying the extreme weather events of 535-536 CE?
- 📝 Were Mongol or Chinese cavalry charges among the largest in history?
- 📝 Why did Chinese use high tin bronze for swords?
- 📝 Why does Japan celebrate the Gregorian New Year but China still celebrates Chinese New Year?
- 📝 Did Mao want to convert written Chinese into a phonetic system?
- 📝 Does Chinese history really span the past 5000 years?
- 📝 Did the Vikings practice voluntary human sacrifice?
- 📝 Before European influence circa 1600, did any Chinese believe the Earth was spherical, and did they ever try to measure it?
- 📝 When did the practice of formal declaration of war start?
- 📝 Which fruits and vegetables did Chinese migrants introduce to Australia during the gold rush?
- 📝 How did the ancient Chinese coordinate armies of tens and hundreds of thousands?
- 📝 Why is Russian far east less populated than Chinese north east regions?
- 📝 Why do all my history books divide Chinese history after the Han dynasty?
- 📝 Did the Chinese Develop Steam Engines Prior to the 17th Century?
- 📝 The practice of translating foreign monarch's or noble's name
- 📝 Were there any Chinese expeditions to explore the world? If not, why not?
- 📝 Why did monarchy become common practice after the fall of Rome?
- 📝 Did any Chinese scholars propose a heliocentric model?
- 📝 Did ancient Chinese and/or Japanese scholars speculate about what lay across the Pacific?