Man Buys Coffin For 70-Year-Old Living Mother, Hires People To Carry It Home While She's Inside

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A man in China bought a coffin for his 70-year-old mother, alive, and hired 16 men to carry it home. He calls it a sign of love and respect.

The man, from Hunan province , believes this gesture will bring his mother good luck and a long life. A viral video showed the cheerful elderly woman sitting inside the coffin holding a fan. The men carried it in a procession.

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A brass band played, and a crowd followed them. After reaching home, a traditional ceremony with incense and offerings was held. A villager said he had seen such events three times before.

“The core idea is to express filial piety. It is a rural tradition. The elderly are usually very happy about it, but it is not very common these days,” he told Guizhou Radio TV Station.

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“It is simply meant to bring joy. Buying a coffin for an elderly mother is a symbolic gesture to wish her a long and blessed life,” the man added.

According to the villager, the ceremony costs around $2,800 ( ₹2.4 lakh). It includes the expense for the banquet, horn players and coffin bearers.

Coffins in Chinese culture

In Chinese culture, coffins are seen as lucky because the word for coffin sounds like“official wealth”, according to the South China Morning Post. Letting elderly people experience lying in a coffin while still alive is believed to bring peace, long life and blessings.

In many villages, people over 70 prepare their own coffins and keep them at home. Funerals for the living are called“celebrations”, showing a calm approach to death.

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Carrying the coffin is an important tradition. While there's no fixed rule, it's often done by 8 or 16 people, called the“Eight Immortals” or“Eight Great Vajras”, according to SCMP. The coffin must not touch the ground during the journey.

Chinese funerals include many superstitions. One is covering mirrors to protect the spirit and avoiding crying near the coffin. The direction of the coffin is chosen carefully. The funeral procession is grand, often led by music.

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