RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1981
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/ff36bt18m
211

ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY

HONG KONG BRANCH

MEMBERSHIP LIST

(As at 31st December, 1982)

Patron

H.E. Sir Murray Maclehose, G.B.E., K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O.,

HONORARY MEMBERS

The Aide-de-Camp, Government House LAM, Mr. Yung-fai LAWRY, Mr. R.E.

MACLEHOSE, Sir Murray, G.B.E., K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O.

O'HARA, Mrs. Margaret,

TOPLEY, Dr. Marjorie,

LOCAL LIFE MEMBERS

ALLEYNE, Mrs. E.L. BOARD, Mr. D.B.M.

BONSALL, Mr. G.W. BUTT, Dr. N.S.G. CALCINA, Mr. P.G. CHAMBERS, Mr. J.W. CHAN, Mr. Alfred T. CHENG, Mr. Tuck CHIU, Dr. Ling Yeong, CHOA, Dr. Gerald H. CHUN, Miss Oy-ling COMBER, Mr. Leon

CRAMER, Mr. B.L.C.

CRONE, Dr. D.L.

DJOU, Mr. G.G.

DUNCAN, Mrs. Josephine

EMERSON, Mr. Geoffrey C.

EVANS, Mr. Paul J.

EVANS, Mrs. P.J.

FABER, Mrs. Audrey

FAULKNER, Mr. Raymond J.

FOK, Miss Nora

FREMANTLE, Mr. Adam

FRY, Mr. R.A.

FUNG, Mrs. Beatrice,

GAFF, Mrs. Jennifer A.

GORDON, The Hon. Sir S.S.

GREEN, Mrs. Judith

HASE, Dr. Patrick H.

HAYES, Dr. James W. HAYIM, Mr. E.J.

HO, Mr. Tick-on

HONEY, Dr. N.R.

HOPKINSON, Mrs. I.

HOWARD, Mr. William James HOWNAM-MEEK, Mrs. R.S. HOYNINGEN-HUENE,

Baron Ture von

HU, Dr. Shih Chang HUI, Miss Wai Haan HUNG, Mr. Chiu-sing IU, Miss Sheila

KINOSHITA, Mr. James H. KVAN, Rev. Erik

LAI, Mr. T.C

LAU, Dr. Michael Wai-Mai

LAWRENCE, Mrs. B.M.I. LEE, Mr. J.S. LEE, Dr. R.C.

LETHBRIDGE, Mr. H.J. LEUNG, Mr. Pak-Kui

LI, Mr. David K.P.

FUNG, Sir Kenneth Ping-Fan, O.B.E., J.P. LISOWSKI, Prof. F.P.

LISOWSKI, Mrs. W.Y.

GILKES, Mr. David GORDON, Mr. K.H.A.

LIU, Mr. D.H.

LO, Mr. T.S.

Page 225

Page 226
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RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1991
https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/k356gt84j
104

CHINESE FUNERALS: A CASE STUDY

DAN WATERS

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,

And all that beauty, all that wealth ever gave

Awaits alike the inevitable hour;

The paths of glory lead but to the grave.

Thomas Gray, Elegy Written in Country Churchyard.

Introduction

This paper examines an actual, fairly typical, present-day Chinese death in urban Hong Kong and the funeral services and mourning that follow. Comparisons are made with past customs in Hong Kong, with traditional Hong Kong New Territories funerals and European funerals. Because this paper is largely about Hong Kong, Cantonese terms and Romanisations are mainly used rather than pinyin. Currency quoted is in Hong Kong dollars.

The author is grateful to Mr Gerald C.S. Siu, manager of the Hong Kong Funeral Home, Doctor James Hayes, the Reverend Carl T. Smith, Mrs Judy Kant Young and other persons and organisations named in this paper. Help varied from recommending source material to providing information.

The Case Study

One November night in 1988, a couple received a call saying the wife's mother had been taken to hospital. Shortly after midnight the couple, together with the wife's two younger sisters and two granddaughters, gathered around the corpse.

Traditionally, Chinese hope for a peaceful death in old age with family mustered around the deathbed. In this case the end came suddenly. As Chuang Tzu, sometimes named as the first important Taoist writer, phrased it:

We are born as from a quiet sleep,

We die to a calm awakening.
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