yin and yang energies. After dying, the spirit, (xiao) and their ancestors with ritual propriety, li. In life, : hun was believed to have merely moved from one realm of existence, the (renjian), where the physical form was visible, to another: the

doi:10.4324/9780203039359-27

Chapter

yin and yang energies. After dying, the spirit, (xiao) and their ancestors with ritual propriety, li. In life,

ABSTRACT

The resulting cult of ancestor worship (observed from the emperor downwards) involved the maintenance of ancestral halls (zongtang) and memorial temples (citang) for the preservation of tablets and carrying out the required ritual offerings. Whereas a propitious burial following the rules of fengshui, might harness yangqi and bring earthly benefits, neglected ancestors - especially those destined to be wandering ghosts (kuhun) - could just as easily turn malevolent (Freedman, 1958:81-91, 118-54). Hence, the disposal (sangli) of the deceased, like the respect shown to dead ancestors through ancestor worship (jizu) took central stage in traditional culture.