Cultural Studies On Funeral Customs Of Ming And Qitng Dynasties In Linfen District

As one of the five Rites in ancient China,funeral ritual has a very important status and function.The funeral customs are also the result of the integration of common character and personality embodied in the national ritual system.Due to the influence of its geographical location and cultural environment,funeral rituals in Linfen area are formed regional and inheriting.This paper will make a deep analysis of funeral rituals in Linfen from the perspective of regional history to get a further understanding of the funeral customs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties of Linfen area.The study of the funeral customs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Linfen area is composed of two parts: the official system and the local customs.This paper introduces the official system of the state through the initial specification of the pre-Qin literature,such as The Book of Rites,Ceremonial Etiquette and so on in combination with the documents of Ming and Qing Dynasties,Statute Book of Ming,Etiquette Book of Ming and Statute Book of Qing.Then,according to the existing local intention of Linfen area,the inscription materials and the present oral description of the local customs analysis,the full-scale funeral customs of Linfen area during the Ming and Qing Dynasties are restored.And through the comparison,the violation of the rites could be seen and it has reference significance for the present.In the Ming and Qing Dynasties of Linfen area,the funeral customs basically followed the ancient ceremony.Because it was located in the middle of the central plain,it had been influenced by Confucian thought since ancient times.Therefore,in the funeral ceremony,the basic process of funeral was carried out according to the ritual system.However,because of its over-adherence to Confucianism,the concept of piety dominated people's behavior,and the objective disease of the local poor in individual counties and districts,the burial period was delayed and the phenomenon of no burial was formed.The second reason is that the Buddhism spread rapidly after Wei and Jin Dynasty,and there was a deep foundation among the civilians in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.In addition,the disaster continued to deepen the influence of Buddha in the people's faith.People hoped to eliminate the sins and do not suffer in next lives,finally form the state of penetration and integration of Buddha in Confucian's original funeral.Due to the influence of its geographical and cultural factors on its economy and the influence of the new customs added under the infiltration of Buddha's new thought,it has formed the mode of funeral and ritual in Linfen area.The funeral customs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties of Linfen area not only reflected thedifference between Linfen region and the state's ritual system,but they are also the feedback of local economy and culture under the background of the country at that time.And these rites formed an objective and accurate cognition of local culture,which became a favorable way to study the local history.