AIF columnist Georgy Zotov from China tells a horrifying story of how ancient superstitions flourish in the modern world, where the graves of young girls are ripped open and even the living are killed in order to "give them in marriage" to the dead.
… The owner of a funeral agency in Guangzhou Wang Long, talking about the tradition, is somewhat shy.
“You see, we have been building socialism in China for 68 years, we are a successful industrial state, the second economy in the world, with skyscrapers and high-speed trains. And these monstrous superstitions - they come from very ancient China. At the burials of the first emperors of the Han dynasty, who ruled in the III-II centuries BC, their concubines, servants, guards were killed, so that the lord in the afterlife would have someone to help and serve. Until now, archaeologists find tombs full of skulls and bones."
But that there is an era before our era, here is the news of our days. Just last week, four newly buried corpses of young women were kidnapped from a cemetery in the vicinity of Guangzhou, although the thieves were caught almost immediately.
“They have paid informants in all the city's cemeteries,” says Van Long. - As soon as a new burial appears, they immediately report. We have already installed video cameras, but, as you can see, it doesn’t scare you away. Still would. If the body is in excellent condition, the relatives of the future 'husband' can pay 100,000 yuan (900,000 rubles - Ed.) For it."
Hair on the skull
“Ghost weddings,” as my interlocutor correctly pointed out, have always been popular in China, and in recent years have found a “second wind”. When a single young man dies (only in some car accidents in the PRC a year up to 100 thousand (!) Residents of the country die), in some provinces, relatives try to bury him together with the “bride” - any deceased female: otherwise “in the next world he is always will be lonely and will not be able to start a family. Moreover, according to legend, the soul of the deceased will begin to come at night, and annoy relatives - until the dead will be provided with a worthy spouse.
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In 1949, the communists came to power in the Celestial Empire, and Mao Tse-tung, one of the first decrees, strictly prohibited this perverse ritual. However, in rural areas, the tradition of "afterlife marriage" has remained unchanged, and now has become popular in the cities. "Black" diggers satisfy any request. For example, an old, "long-term" skeleton of a woman (you need to have long hair on the skull) costs 500 yuan (4,500 rubles), but only the poorest people buy this option. The fresher the corpse, the more expensive it is. It got to the point that the police set up posts at large cemeteries in Shanghai and Beijing, and groups of relatives "dumping" together, hire private guards for 2-3 months so that the bodies of young and beautiful deceased are not kidnapped soon after burial.
“There was a terrible incident last year,” a journalist from Guangzhou confesses to me. - A girl of eighteen suddenly died of a heart attack. She was well embalmed, looked alive at the funeral. So, the poor thing's corpse was stolen after three hours (!), Barely filling up the grave. On the filming of an outdoor surveillance camera, you can see - a truck is being driven, there are excavators in masks - one, two, and everything is ready. The robbers were never found, although the police immediately dispatched their agents to all the surrounding funerals. Perhaps the deceased was then secretly transported to northern China."
Death merchants
Sometimes things happen and much worse. For example, in 2007, a certain Son Tiantang killed six young girls and sold their bodies to the relatives of the deceased boys for "ghost weddings." As the murderer boredly explained during interrogation, it is much easier to find and kill a “suitable specimen” than to keep an eye on the churchyards and dig up a “bride” in good condition. In 2016, Chinese police arrested three people in Shanxi province who were carrying a woman's corpse in their car: a special "bait" guy invited the lady on a date via the Internet, and then injected the girl with a lethal dose of sleeping pills. There were already buyers for the "dead bride" - the family of a first-year student who drowned while swimming in the river: they were going to pay the murderers 35,000 yuan (about 300,000 rubles). In Hebei province, a gang of cynical marauders was detained, who managed to sell a dead body twice in a row:first, the deceased was dug up, “pushed” to one family, and after burial with a ghostly “husband”, they were again taken out of the ground and resold to others - at the time of the deal they were detained.
"Black coffin digging" is punished by the state severely, for such a thing the parents of the "groom" can receive at least 5 years in prison, and the kidnappers - 10 years in labor camps, but such things stop few people: it is too profitable. Prices for monstrous services are constantly growing - in our time, a high-quality “dead bride” will cost 5 (!) Times more than it cost 10 years ago. The most recent incident is the payment for the body of a professional photo model who died in a car accident, as much as 180,000 yuan (1 million 600 thousand rubles).
Corpse bride
“The police and television are relentlessly propagating - don’t be slaves to superstition, don’t go crazy, but it’s very difficult to convince people,” says Xi Meiling, a businessman from Guangzhou. - The wedding with the deceased is played according to all the rules, with the invitation of relatives and Buddhist monks, they arrange a generous feast, where the guests wish the "young" dead men family happiness. Of course, monks should not participate in such an action, but, as you understand, almost everything is possible for money in China now. Socialism could not erase from us the eternal craving for mysticism and belief in the afterlife.
These completely wild customs are the essence of the traditions of China, where skyscrapers with a "notch" are still being built so that a dragon could … settle there. Ancient superstitions still play a huge role in the lives of nearly one and a half billion Chinese people. The authorities, of course, are trying to deal with the most harmful of them - as with the aforementioned "dead brides" trade. But, apparently - so far unsuccessfully.
By the way, about the history
After the death of the ruler of the Chinese kingdom Qin (VII century BC), 177 people were buried alive in the same tomb with the sovereign - courtiers and guards, as well as … acrobats for fun in the afterlife. During the large-scale burial of the first emperor of unified China, Qin Shi Huang Ti (210 BC), his wives, who had no children, were buried together with the royal spouse, as well as their beloved servants - some were killed in advance, the rest were covered with earth alive, after having tied them up. The construction of a tomb for the emperor of the Celestial Empire usually began in the first years of the reign and continued throughout the subsequent reign of the monarch. It was only during the Tang dynasty (618-907 AD) that the massacres at the burials stopped: however, when the crown prince died unmarried, his beloved concubine was buried with him.
According to the laws of modern France, if the bridegroom has died (or vice versa), the marriage can be concluded posthumously - the petition must be submitted to the president of the country, and the family of the deceased must give consent. Pregnancy and a written promise to marry are not arguments. As a rule, only one request out of four is granted. At the wedding ceremony, a girl stands with a photograph of the deceased groom. And, of course, a living wife with a dead husband is not buried.