"Marriage and funeral" is a major event in life from ancient times to the present, they run through people's lives, and they are the process of people's journey in the world from the beginning, to the peak, and then to the end, so they are attached great importance to both at home and abroad.
Thanks to the ancestor worship of Chinese, even after the elder dies, he will still be honored by the descendants of relatives and friends, and whenever the Qingming and Zhongyuan dynasties, the paper money burning on the streets carries the mourning and piety of the family.
When we use ceremonies to commemorate people who have passed away, we will use the word "memorial", in fact, these two words can have a lot of potential. In the past, "sacrifice" and "sacrifice" were two completely different situations, but with the development of time, the two gradually merged together.
Usually, everyone will not pay too much attention when using these two words, but if you make a mistake in the meaning between the two words on some special occasions, it is easy to make a big joke.
The history of the "matsuri"
"Sacrifice" originally meant "sacrifice", and on the oracle bones unearthed in the Shang Dynasty there was the most primitive word for "sacrifice", and the original word "sacrifice" was a structure of upper and lower, which at first glance looked like a person holding bloody meat in his hand and offering it to the heavens.
In subsequent dynasties, the word sacrifice also evolved and accentuated the sense of ritual. It is no longer people who hold offerings, but solemn altars, which can also be seen in the continuous development of the productive forces of the ancients.
Shang Zhou still has gods and ghosts, so the objects of sacrifice are mainly gods of faith, and the process of sacrifice is also relatively bloody, not only to slaughter livestock, but also to use human martyrdom to highlight their piety.
The famous Shang Dynasty national heroine "Nühao" was the queen of the Shang king Wuding, and also a priest and general with a knighthood, who once led an army to defeat the Aryans who came from the east and avoided the consequences of the heavy blow to The Chinese civilization.
In order to show respect for the woman, the tomb of the woman not only contains a large number of exquisite bronzes, but also the martyred slaves.
These slaves were tested to have distinct Caucasian characteristics and were most likely Aryan prisoners of war captured by the Shang Dynasty.
It can be seen that the original meaning of "sacrifice" does not have any tragic color, but is more of a sacred ritual that honors merit and highlights piety, and is often sacrificed to people or gods of high status.
The history of the word "Dian"
The word "Dian" is as old as the word "sacrifice", and the original character "Dian" can also be seen in the writing left by the Shang Dynasty.
The original word "Dian" is the shape of a wine vessel at the top, and below it are the ground and water droplets, representing the wine in the wine vessel sprinkled to the ground, which is the way of ancestor worship, and until now there are many occasions to retain such a ceremony.
And the word "Dian" slowly appeared in every corner of the funeral, whether it was in the middle of the solemn spiritual hall or on the dark coffin.
Some areas have retained the tradition of pasting the word "Dian", and the New Year and wedding parties will be pasted with red paper with "Fu" and "囍", and the funeral will be replaced by a white paper with the word "Dian", which adds a bit of mourning to the departure of relatives.
In this way, although dian is also a ritual like sacrifice, it is more tragic, and the objects of sacrifice are often human ancestors and deceased relatives.
The ceremony of sacrifice often expresses not to pray to the other party, but to express one's own mourning and mourning for those who have passed away.
Similarities and differences in the memorial
However, although the details of the two are very different, on the whole, there are still similarities, so it also lays the foundation for the gradual integration of the two in later generations.
In the pre-Qin period, the memorial ceremony was often carried out separately, but with the development, the sacrifice gradually merged, and the funeral ceremony should not only have a sacrifice ceremony, but also a memorial ceremony, generally speaking, the funeral ceremony is held before the burial, and the sacrifice ceremony is used after the burial.
The reason is that the ancients believed in the idea of "the soul is immortal", believing that after the human soul leaves the body, it will continue to live in the underworld, and everything in the underworld is the same as the human world.
The coffin of the deceased is his house in the underworld, and the funeral goods of the deceased will continue to be enjoyed after his death, so this is why the ancients often paid special attention to burial after death, and if there is no burial, they will become lonely ghosts.
At the same time, dignitaries and dignitaries will also install a large number of funerary items in the tomb, which not only have pearls and jade bronzes, but also daily objects used before they die, and even toilets and other things must be readily available.
Delicious food is also the main component of funerary products, and the tomb owners of the Mawangdui Han Tomb are Hou Licang and Lady Xin Chai.
Mrs. Xin Chai's tomb is well preserved, not only is Xin Chai's own body incorruptible, but the funerary products are also bright in color, and even the lotus pieces and plums contained in the lacquerware are also in good shape.
The Chinese attaches great importance to diet, believing that food is the most devotional offering, so it is not only necessary to accompany food to the funeral, but also to prepare incense cases during ceremonies and ceremonies, and to place drinks and ingredients for the ancestors to feast.
Funerals today tend to be less clearly distinguished between ceremonies and ceremonies, but traditions are still preserved in some areas.
If you confuse the name or content of the two on the corresponding occasion, it will not only make you laugh and be generous, but also cause unnecessary misunderstandings and end up with the name of "disrespecting the deceased".
Of course, there are many differences in the offerings, the most obvious of which is their meaning and status. China is a country of etiquette, and since ancient times, it has been very respectful of etiquette, and the most representative is the "five rites".
They are auspicious ceremonies, fierce ceremonies, military ceremonies, bin ceremonies, and jiali.
Among them, auspicious ceremony is often the most solemn and important ceremonial sacrifice, and the sacrifice is one of the representative ceremonies, which often means auspicious and solemn.
The ritual is directly related to funerals, and the original meaning of the ceremony refers to the ritual system for commemorating and mourning the unfortunate.
Therefore, in the practical sense, sacrifices and worship are one positive and one opposite, but they communicate with each other.
Funeral ceremonies are performed before the deceased is buried, and after the burial, the ceremony is replaced by the ceremony, turning from tragedy to joy, which also implies the ancient people's concept of life and death and the attitude of nostalgia for the past.
epilogue
China is a country with a long history, it is a symbol of civilization, a powerful representative, and a history of 5,000 years runs through all aspects of Chinese life.
Culture is not only embodied in the gentle and long poems and profound thoughts, but also in a couplet, a window flower, and then a meal and a Chinese character at the New Year's Festival.
Chinese romance and outlook on life have been passed down through in ancient rituals.
No matter where you are, the reverence and longing for your ancestors in your heart is as difficult to give up as your blood vein closely linked to China, and it is also the most important link on the road to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.