Speech "Japanese pre-funeral ceremony"

Hello everyone.

Today, I'd like to talk to you about Japanese pre-funeral ceremony. This is the ceremony which became famous for the appearance in the Oscar-winner movie "Okuribito."

After this speech you will be able to understand the unique Japanese custom and thoughts around death.

Before the main subject,

I want you to know the background of my speech.

 

About six years ago, after I quit Japanese Self Defense Force.

( it's known as "Jieitai" in Japanese.) I decided to work for the funeral service company in Saitama and had worked for one year.

Until then I was completely tired of the Jieitai business of never-ending-training and the situation never-making-use-of-them. After those time,  strongly I want to be useful, usuful for something I could trust. At that time something around death was the only one thing I could trust.

Now I understand this kind of motivation is a little bit strange.

 If I had met clinical psychology at that time, my life could have changed maybe.

And,

I want to talk about 3 points in my speech.

First, the purpose of the ceremony.

Next, the origin of the ceremony.

Last, The actual process and the details of the ceremony.

So, let's look at the first point.

1

In Japan, After we decease(after we die), from the bed to the grave, there are many steps, many kinds of ceremonies.

Before the formal ceremonies, some families hold the pre-funeral ceremonies.

As far as I know, this is the first ceremony after someone deceased.

In Japanese we call it "Noukan-shiki"

Noukan means "lay the deceased in the coffin."

(Coffin is a human-sized wooden box. The Japanese name is "Hitsugi")

In this ceremony  we make the body on the bed move to the coffin.
Specifically we change his clothing and make the final preparation.

To tell the truth,

this is also preparations for the survived family.

The distance from the bed to the coffin is so long.

The survived family accept it through this private ceremony.

This is the purpose of this ceremony.

Next, let's look at the origin of the ceremony.

2

As you know, before the Meiji-era, Most of Japanese hold the funeral of family members almost by themselves. At that time the "pre-funeral ceremony" is not an exact "ceremony". Of course they made the preparations but it's not ceremonial.

It's one of the natural processes in the funeral time and this process provides them with the time to accept the death . 

Then who make this ceremony?

I think it can be said that the professional funeral service produce this ceremony.

In the modern funeral ceremonies, the family have to behave as host and deal with many guests along with their sad and heavy feelings.

Paradoxically, people with the deepest grief can not afford to feel sorrow in formal ceremonies.

We never go back to the old way now.

But we have to find the way to fix this paradox.

One of the answers is the pre-funeral ceremony.

And then, at last I will tell you about actual process of the ceremony.

3

Please imagine

We are in the room for the pre-funeral ceremony.

Now is the time just before the pre-funeral ceremony begin.

The deceased lie on white futon.

I sit down at the feet of him. I am preparing clothing.

Another woman staff sitting down at the head of him puts foundation cream on his face as a basic makeup.

The family comes into the room.

And the ceremony begins.

I give some greetings to them and explain about the clothing.

And I and the other women staff make him wear white kimono.

After that I say to them

"For the preparation of the journey, please make him wear the hand guard, foot guard and sox. "

 The journey? It’s called "Shijyu-ku-nichi" (“49 days journey”).

After that, we would be decided what we’ll be in our next life.

It's a what we call transmigration in the wheel of life.

"Rinne-Tenshou" in Japanese.

At the seventh day of the journey, we find the river between this world and the other world.

The name of the river is "Sanzu-no-kawa"

We cross this river on the boat and the price of the boat fare is 6 pence.

To cross without troubles, we put printed-6pence in the small white bag and hang this on the neck of the deceased.

we call it "Rokumon-sen."

It is believed that without this money, old lady in the river comes to us and take our clothing away.

So, I have to return to our subject, process of the ceremony.

Some of the family come and tie the strings of the clothing.

And other people come to him one by one to clean his body.

Usually, clothing of the deceased are all-white.

These days, western wedding style changes the meaning of all-white.

But in Japan, originally living-man never wears all-whites.

If someone wears them, he shows the attitude "I am ready to die".

For example Samurai at Harakiri situation.

By the way,

This ceremony is based on the Buddhism.

According to this religion, after we deceased we take a long journey to the other world. Actually it takes 49days. For this long journey we prepare some equipments, stick, short sward, printed money, straw hat and straw sandals and put them in the coffin.

And now, all the preparation is finished.

5 or 6 men come to him and together they lay the deceased in the coffin.

Everybody comes around the coffin.

Everybody sees the body in the coffin.

This view tells us something.

Here is the point between the world and the other world.

It's the end of life but it's the departure for the next life.

Some people are crying.

Some people are saying prayers.

Some people are talking to him and touching him softly.

I say to them

"please join your hands together and please pray for the deceased"

Everyone joins their hands together. we keep silence and pray.

And the time has come.

Slowly politely I close the coffin.

This is the end of the ceremony.

And also this is the end of my speech.

Thank you for your listening.

I'm so pleased to talk you about my experience and Japanese unique ceremony.

Thank you very much.