Author: Godot
China's plutonium products sell well in Europe and the United States, and have become a new way for hipsters to worship their ancestors.
The Qingming Festival has arrived, and the business of dark coins in the streets and alleys has begun to explode again.
In recent years, Chinese paper money and paper dollar treasures have helped many foreigners achieve "wealth freedom", and Amazon e-commerce data shows that China's pluto products sell well in Europe and the United States, becoming a new way for hipsters to worship their ancestors.
However, not only is it necessary in Chinese culture to "send money" to the deceased, but Westerners also have a tradition of "bribing little devils".
In the movie "From Hell", after the death of detective played by Johnny Depp, two coins are placed in his eyes – a practice that is one of the traditions of Western funerals.
After the death of Detective Johnny Depp, two coins were placed in his eyes. /Stills from Hell
The film is based on the story of the infamous "Jack the Ripper" from 19th-century London, who puts a coin in the eyes of the deceased whenever Jack brutally kills his victim.
The tradition of stamping the eyes of the deceased with coins is derived from Greek mythology. The people of ancient Greece believed that after the death of a person, the soul would float out of the body to go to the underworld, and the coin was the bridge between the present world and the underworld.
After death, how does the soul go to the underworld?
In Chinese culture, the nai ho bridge is the only way to hades; in ancient Greek mythology, the deceased also had to "cross the river", they would cross one of the five Styx rivers and take a boat to the underworld.
The Greek names of these five Styx rivers represent the five emotions of life and death: the Styx (Nu River), the Akejong River (Akering River), the Lette River (River of Oblivion), the Fleggesan River (River of Flames) and the Xertes River (River of Lamentations).
Charon, a boatman in the underworld, leads the dead across the Styx River.
Whether it's the Nai Ho Bridge or the Styx, they are an imagination that helps people understand death. The gushing river divides the living and the dead into two worlds, never intersecting.
In Greek mythology, there is a ferryman on the Styx, who is Charon, the boatman of Hades, the king of Hades, and only through him can the deceased successfully cross the Styx to reach the underworld. The Greek word for "Charon" means hot twinkling eyes, which is also in line with his own image - irritable and irritable.
If Charon wants to help extradite the deceased, he must pay him a "ferry ticket", otherwise, he may directly throw people into the Styx.
Worried that the deceased relatives and friends will not be able to arrive at the underworld with peace of mind? People need to prepare coins for Charon in advance.
If Charon is to help extradite the deceased, he must pay him a "ferry ticket". /Charon and Psyche
In some regional traditions, coins are put in the mouths of the deceased, while in others, coins are thrown into the water.
In the movie "War of the Gods", Perseus leads the warriors to the underworld. After one of the warriors threw a coin into the river, the boatman Charon "saw the money and made the rudder" and quickly came in a small boat to lead the warriors into the dungeon.
Although the tradition of "stuffing coins for the deceased" is very long, from the archaeological results, the "coin content" in ancient Greek tombs is not very high, for example, on the Black Sea coast, only 17% of the tombs found coins in ancient tombs in the mid-4th century BC.
In fact, it was not until the time of the Roman Empire that this kind of funerary rite was gradually promoted. Around the 5th century AD, the ritual of "putting coins" began to flourish throughout the Continent; at the end of the 19th century, it gradually disappeared. The story of "Jack the Ripper" takes place at the end of the 19th century, which is the end of this ritual.
Only 17% of the tombs in ancient tombs found in the middle of the 4th century BC have found coins. /Wikimedia Commons
So why put a coin in the eyes of the deceased?
It is said that this is because the relatives of the deceased could not accept the departure of their relatives for a while, so with a glimmer of hope, they put the coin on the eyelids of the deceased, hoping that they would open their eyes and wake up.
In the second episode of the sixth season of the American drama "Game of Thrones", there is also a plot of putting stones on the eyes of the dead, which is also related to the Tradition of Westerners putting coins on the eyes of the dead.
Regarding the ritual of death, there is always the hope of life.
In the second episode of the sixth season of the American drama "Game of Thrones", there is also a plot of putting stones on the eyes of the dead. /Film and television stills
Death, which is easily explained physiologically, is the permanent termination of the biological function of keeping the body functioning, essentially the demise of a substance. But for humans with memories and emotions, death means how to say goodbye to a past, deep or shallow memory.
In ancient Greek mythology, when the undead successfully crossed the Styx, they would walk to a place called the "Plains of Narcissus", where they would forget all the memories of this life. Coincidentally, the concept of "Meng Po soup" in the Chinese tradition is to say that after drinking Meng Po soup, the deceased will forget the memory of this life.
Burning paper money or putting coins are the reluctance and concern of the living for the dead, and people hope that their relatives can smoothly enter another world, where they can eat well, drink well, and start over.
Only in this way can people put their minds at ease and be ready to wave goodbye to their loved ones.
Resources:
Sohu.com | A murder case in which the deceased was blinded by a coin, and the reason was...
Knowing the | Why do foreigners put coins on their eyes after death?