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A day in the life
Master of ceremonies
By Eric Tsang
Most people are probably clueless about how a funeral is or-ganised. In fact, most people probably would not want to know anything about it at all, anyway.
The funeral business thus exists behind a mysterious veil.
There are many people involved in a funeral, the most important being the master of ceremonies.
A master of ceremonies is the person in charge of a funeral. He tells the family what to do, and how to do it, during the funeral.
“He is the middleperson between the family and the monk, the funeral parlor and the mourners. He is a crucial communicator,” said Bowie Ng, sales manager at Po Fook Hill Funeral Parlor.
It is not necessary for a master of ceremonies to have a religious background, according to Mr. Ng. In fact, some are atheists.
Mr. Law, who declined to reveal his first name, is a master of ceremonies who works in a funeral parlor in Hung Hom. He talked about his life and his work.
“We are always the unwelcome members in the family.
“Even during the Lunar New Year, they feel uncomfortable sitting with us at the reunion dinners.
“They think we will spread bad luck because we work closely with the dead.”
Despite complaints from his parents, he is determined to continue his career as a master of ceremony.
“It’s ridiculous to associate us with dark omens.
“Although we are servicing the dead, as long as we treat them well, we are blessed more than cursed.
“Frankly speaking, it is a harsh job. We have long and lonely working hours.”
The following is a chronology of his day at the funeral parlor:
3:30 p.m.: A few people are preparing paper offerings for their late grandfather. His portrait is on the wall, surrounded by yellow and white flowers.
3:35 p.m.: Mr. Law puts on a plain white gown. He says, “White is the theme color of Chinese funerals.”
3:40 p.m.: He helps the grandmother put on a white and brown cotton scarf. He says the scarf represents her sadness at losing her husband.
3:45 p.m.: The monk arrives and asks Mr. Law for details of the deceased and his family. Mr. Law explains the funeral procedures to the family members and what the monk will do in the ceremony.
3:55 p.m.: Other relatives arrive at the funeral parlor. Mr. Law arranges seats for them. The ceremony is about to begin. He helps the family fold and pack the paper money.
“We are responsible for everything here,” he says.
4:10 p.m.: All relatives are seated. The family members follow Chiu Chow tradition and drink bitter tea after the ceremony.
The father is nervous and accidentally smashes a teapot on the ground.
Mr. Law tries to comfort the family members and explains the funeral procedure to them again.
4:30 p.m.: The first part of the funeral, the “path opening” ceremony, or hoi lo, begins with the monk chanting prayers for the late grandfather.
The purpose of the “path opening” ceremony is to wake up the spirit and open a “pathway” for the spirit to communicate with his family. Under Mr. Law’s supervision, relatives line up in front of the coffin and bow, taking turns according to their status in family.
Mr. Law takes the microphone. “Please step forward and bow. The first bow. The second bow. The third bow.”
4:45 p.m.: Ding ding. The monk is ringing a pair of bells. Relatives surround the body of the deceased in the coffin and ask for a mouthful of bitter tea. This marks the end of the “path opening” ceremony, the first part of the funeral.
5:10 p.m.: The family dines at the front door of the funeral parlor. They are having vegetarian dishes, which is a tradition at Chinese funerals.
The grandmother stares at her husband’s portrait and bursts into tears. She refuses to eat anything.
5:30 p.m.: The monk and two of his apprentices are preparing for the second part of the funeral — “hell’s gate opening”, or poh dei yuk — to alleviate the spirit from the 18 kinds of suffering in the 18 levels of hell.
Dozens of light bulbs in the shape of fire are illuminated. Eighteen ceramic plates, representing the 18 levels of hell, are placed on the ground.
8:00 p.m.: The monk holds a sword with a burning talisman attached to its tip. He quickly and swiftly swings the sword in the air and spits a mouthful of rice liquor on the burning talisman. A pillar of fire shoots into the air. The monk, with the sword in his hand, dances around the hall. He leaps from one ceramic plate to the other, breaking all 18 of them into halves.
8:10 p.m.: He helps the family burn paper offerings. Ashes fly all over the place.
9:10 p.m.: The funeral comes to an end. Mr. Law asks the family say their last goodbye to the deceased before the coffin is sent back to the storage room.
10:00 p.m.: The family leaves the funeral parlor. They do not look back at the deceased’s portrait, as instructed by Mr. Law. The Chinese believe that this will obstruct the spirit’s passage into another world.
10:30 p.m.: Mr. Law’s work is finally finished.
He takes off his gown, which looks gray after the lights are turned off. The portrait and flowers are removed from the wall.
Only empty chairs and fallen yellow petals remain in the funeral hall.
“Our working environment is filled with sorrow and gloom. Few people can handle it,” he says.