Sadly, we were able to attend a Japanese wake. It was a beautiful Buddhist service at a funeral parlor. There was an enormous quantity of flowers and food to appease the gods, asking them to come and listen to the prayers of the people. Here, a wake is not just people coming and paying their respects, but a whole ceremony. Two priests lit incense and chanted, and for some of the chants, other mourners joined in. The chanting was very beautiful and soothing. One of the family members of the deceased made a emotional speech in Japanese, saying that his mother-in-law was always very motherly, looking out for her family, and waiting for the most convenient time to pass so that everyone was able to attend the wake.
In attending a wake, you are expected to give money in an envelope with a black and white ribbon, and you receive a gift for attending. Many major events in life here have specific envelopes and specific amounts of money to give, and you typically receive a gift worth about half of what you've given. At this particular wake, many, many people attended because the family is very well known and loved. To make it easier, you were given a booklet to choose the gift you wanted instead of a generic gift set.
No pictures, as we felt that photography would be inappropriate.
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