BURNING PAPER

During Cheng Beng, the Taoists and some Buddhists believe that the gates of hell are open and during this time, the paper money/homes/people/cars/furniture (and even laptops) which are burnt for the ancestors, will become real stuff in hell for the ancestors to enjoy in the netherworld. Believe me, some of the things look so real that one could easily mistake them for the real items.

One of the tenets of the Chinese Religion (which draws from Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism) is ancestor worship. Contrary to Christian belief, Hell to the Taoist is not an evil place run by the devil or satan. Hell, according to Chinese belief, is an in-between place of learning and a place of spirits waiting to be reborn. It is something out of the twilight zone, another dimension of life. For thousands of years the Chinese have created paper money or Hell Bank notes which is legal tender in the afterworld. This paper money is burned, so that the person who just died or the dead ancestors who might have ended up in Hell would have something to spend. These Hell Notes are also burned during the 7th lunar month during the ghost festival. The Chinese have even created paper cars, houses, and other physical objects out of paper and burn them, so their ancestors can have basic luxuries in hell.

In the above pictures, my mum and I are holding up paper stuff that we bought for our dearly departed. I have been unofficially delegated the task of buying and burning the stuff when I go visit the graves during the Cheng Beng period by my aunts, uncle and cousins from other states who could not make the trip. They have sent me money to buy paper money, paper paraphernalia plus fruits and flowers to be offered to the ancestors.