Funeral rituals in Hongze Lake area, folklore items in the second batch of representative items of municipal intangible cultural heritage in Huai'an. Historical evolution Funeral rituals have a long history, which has been produced since the birth of mankind and originated from belief and worship. Before the Yin Dynasty, people had the idea of hoping that the soul would not die. In the Yin and Shang Dynasties, this idea became richer and stronger. They believed that the soul came from the sky, was yang, and was in charge of people's spiritual perception; the spirit came from the earth, was yin, and was in charge of people's body and flesh. When the soul and the spirit are together, people live, and when they are separated, people die. After the two are separated, the soul ascends to the sky, the spirit enters the earth, and finally returns to the spirit of heaven and earth. After the soul enters the sky, it is transformed into a god, and after the spirit enters the earth, it decomposes into water and returns to the soil. The soul has a protective effect on future generations, and the souls of ancestors are infinitely worshipped by future generations. This is the direct reason why tombs appeared in the Yin and Shang Dynasties. By the Western Zhou Dynasty, the etiquette and customs system in terms of food, clothing, housing, transportation, marriage and funerals had become fixed. Various rituals and customs stipulated in funeral culture, such as the selection of cemetery feng shui, various taboos during mourning, differences in the arrangement of offerings and paper money, etc., have been relatively stable in the Western Zhou Dynasty and deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, gradually forming the national funeral culture psychology. This ideological system has had a profound impact on the funeral view of later generations. After the development and evolution of dynasties, funeral rituals have become increasingly complex and cumbersome, and have become more institutionalized and have been passed down among the people to this day. According to relevant evidence, the Hongze Lake area has formed a unique folk funeral ritual for more than 200 years. Content and characteristics In the funeral rituals of the Hongze Lake area, the funeral ceremony for those who died young is generally very simple, and even the band is not invited. Even if there is, the music played is very sad. When an old man over the age of 60 dies, it is considered to be the end of his life, and there are many procedures. The first is to send off the dead. Before the old man dies, he will move to the main house of the eldest son, and the younger generation will kneel on the spot to send him off. The second is to keep vigil. The deceased is placed on a bed of firewood, with a fire paper (straw paper) on his face, and covered with a quilt and white cloth, with a quilt under his body, commonly known as rising. Children and grandchildren wear mourning clothes and hats, sitting and lying on both sides of the deceased to keep vigil. The third is to report the death (called "baxin" in the dialect). Wait for the funeral host (cousin, maternal uncle's family) to come to the back to hold the funeral ceremony (commonly known as opening the mourning), and after the opening of the mourning, announce the start of the funeral. Some people also have to tie up mourning lanterns, and write the surname and hall name on the mourning lanterns, such as: "Banbu Hall" for those with the surname Zhao, "Sanhuai Hall" for those with the surname Wang, etc. The fourth is to send food. Every day, family members and friends go to the land temple to send food, and the filial son holds the sieve with wine and food in it, and sends it three times before the burial. The fifth is to bury the body. When burying the body, the filial son must "invite three times and invite four times" to ask the funeral host to seal the coffin. The deceased's son-in-law carries a paper sedan or paper horse to offer sacrifices on the road (burning paper and offering sacrifices in front of the deceased's friends' houses along the way), and there is also a ceremony to set up a memorial tablet. The sixth is the funeral. Choose an auspicious day. Usually, the third, fifth, seventh, and ninth days of the first lunar month cannot be used for funerals, but other days are all fine. Before the funeral, first look at Feng Shui to determine the cemetery, dig a grave, and before the coffin is placed in the grave, the filial son takes off his shoes to "warm the kang". After the soil is piled up, all those in mourning put away their mourning hats and scarves, and go to the roadside to cross the fire and eat cakes. The seventh is the seven-seven sacrifice. Ask a Feng Shui master to set up a seven-day list, with seven days as one "seven", for a total of seven sevens. Every seven days, paper must be burned and dumplings must be eaten to offer sacrifices. If the seven is violated, the day of the seven is the day to avoid. At night, the deceased returns home to visit, and the family must prepare wine and food on the table. When it gets dark, the whole family will stay overnight in the designated direction to avoid offending. At six or seven o'clock, relatives and friends offer sacrifices. In addition, the funeral procedures for people over 80 years old who have passed away are the same as above, but they are called "happy events." The funeral home is filled with loud drums and music, and suonas are playing festive tunes. Guests attending the ceremony are invited to eat funeral meals and are given longevity bowls. If someone dies on New Year's Eve, the funeral will be held on the first day of the new year. The funeral rituals in the Hongze Lake area are simple, solemn, and dignified. They are a way for people to express their grief and have inheritance value. They have a high reference value for studying the development and evolution of folk customs, social life, and historical culture in the Hongze Lake area in modern times. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)