Funeral practices and burial customs in the Philippines encompass a wide range of personal, cultural, and traditional beliefs and practices which Filipinos observe in relation to death, bereavement, and the proper honoring, interment, and remembrance of the dead. These practises have been vastly shaped by the variety of religions and cultures that entered the Philippines throughout its complex history.
Most if not all present-day Filipinos, like their ancestors, believe in some form of an afterlife and give considerable attention tohonouring the dead.[1] Except amongst Filipino Muslims (who are obliged to bury a corpse less than 24 hours after death), a wake is generally held from three days to a week.[2] Wakes in rural areas are usually held in the home, while in urban settings the dead is typically displayed in a funeral home. Apart from spreading the news about someone’s death verbally,[2] obituaries are also published in newspapers. Although the majority of the Filipino people are Christians ,they have retained some traditional indigenous beliefs concerning death.
There are actually too many superstitious beliefs that our family observes. I actually don’t believe much in these stuff. But I’ve somehow grown accustomed to them. There are many of these beliefs passed on from the elderly: some are basically understandable, while others are just ridiculous and inexplicable. Somehow I think that most of these superstitions are actually contradictory to what we express as faith in God. But I guess it couldn’t be helped. Simply put, belief in superstitions is already part of our culture, and cannot just simply be taken for granted. Here are some superstitious beliefs:
1. The family and relatives are not allowed to take a bath, or comb the hair within the vicinity of where the body lies in state. (I know it is such a twisted belief. I often ask them what is the connection of taking a bath or combing the hair with funeral but nobody has ever given me an answer.)
2. No sweeping. During the days of the wake, nobody is allowed to sweep the floor, or it will bring bad luck. It is ok to pick up pieces of trash if anyone would want to clean. Sweeping can only be allowed after burial.
3. Never wear red during the wake and the funeral.
4. There should be at least one member of the family to stay awake all night during the wake.
5. The candles, or at least one, should stay lit from the first day of wake until the 40th day after death.
6. Avoid droplets of tears to fall on the coffin’s window.
7. As soon as the coffin is out of the door of the house, family members and relatives should pass under the coffin on the way out.
8. When the coffin is already brought outside of the house for funeral, don’t look back.
9. After the funeral, food must all be consumed and there should be no left-overs. It’s either you give it to your visitors or to your neighbors. However, there’s also this belief that one should never bring food that came from the funeral to his house.
10. When sending a rosary with the corpse, cut it off into pieces in order to hinder any more tragedy in the family.
There you go. Those are just some of the many different superstitions that a lot of Filipinos believe. They’re all weird stuff, I know, but these have all been passed from generations to generations. We all have different cultures and beliefs so we all just have to respect them.
WEDDING TRADITIONS
Traditional marriage customs in the Philippines and Filipino wedding practices pertain to the characteristics of marriage and wedding traditions established and adhered to by Filipino men and women in the Philippines after a period ofcourtship and engagement. These traditions extend to other countries around the world where Filipino communities exist.Kasalan is the Filipino word for "wedding",[1] while its root word – kasal – means "marriage".[2] The present-day character of marriages and weddings in the Philippines were primarily influenced by the permutation of native, Christian, Catholic,Protestant, Spanish,[1] and American models.
A typical ancient traditional Filipino wedding, during pre-colonial times, is held for three days and was officiated by a babaylan, a tribal priest or priestess.[3][4] The house of the babaylan was the ceremonial center for the nuptial. On the first day, the couple was brought to the priest's home, where the babaylan blesses them, while their hands are joined over a container of uncooked rice. On the third day, the priest would prick their chests to draw a small amount of blood, which will be placed on a container to be mixed with water. After announcing their love for each other for three times, they were fed by the priest with cooked rice coming from a single container. Afterwards, they were to drink the water that was mixed with their blood. The priest proclaimed that they are officially wed after their necks and hands were bound by a cord or, sometimes, once their long hairs had been entwined together.[3][4] In lieu of the babaylan, the datu or a wise elder may also officiate a pre-colonial Filipino wedding.[4]
After the ceremony, a series of gift-exchanging rituals was also done to counter the negative responses of the bride: if asked to enter her new home, if she refuses to go up the stairs of the dwelling, if she denies to participate in the marriage banquet, or even to go into her new bedroom, a room she would be sharing with her spouse.[4]
Spanish colonialism brought changes to these marriage rituals because of the teachings and conversion efforts of Spanish missionaries, which occurred as early as the 18th century. As a result, the majority of current-day Filipino weddings became predominantly Christian or Catholic[4] in character, which is also because of the mostly Catholic population, although indigenous traditions still exist today in other regions of the Philippines.[4] Parts of Filipino wedding ceremonies have become faith-centered and God-centered, which also highlights the concept that the joining of two individuals is a "life long commitment" of loving and caring.[1][2] In general, the marriage itself does not only signify the union of two persons, but also the fusion of two families, and the unification two clans.[5]
Filipinos have also developed superstitions that are related to marriage and weddings.[3][4]
Pre-colonial customs include the groom or bride avoiding travel beforehand to prevent accidents from happening.[3] The bride must not wear pearls as these are similar to tears,[3] and a procession of men holding bolos and musicians playing agongs must be done. This march was also done after the ceremony until the newly-wed couple reaches their abode. The purpose of this procession is similar to the current practise of breaking plates during the wedding reception, in order to shoo away bad luck.[3][4]
During Spanish colonisation, the Spaniards introduced new beliefs with particular concern over banning activities that may cause broken marriages, sadness and regret. Wedding gowns cannot be worn in advance [3] as any black-coloured clothing during the ceremony, and sharp objects cannot be given as gifts.[3][4]
Other Filipino beliefs hold that typhoons on wedding days may bring bad fortune; that after the ceremony the bride should walk ahead of her husband or step on his foot to prevent being dominated by him; an extinguished candle during the ceremony is an omen that the groom or bride will die ahead (depending on which candle on whose side was blown out);[3] and an accidentally droppedwedding ring, wedding veil, or wedding arrhae will cause marital misery.[4]
Superstitious beliefs on good fortune include showering the married couple with uncooked rice, as this wishes them a prosperous life together.[3] The groom's arrival at the venue ahead of his bride also diminishes dire fate.[3] In addition, a single woman who will follow the footsteps of a newly married couple may enhance her opportunity to become a bride herself.[4]
Siblings are not permitted to marry within the calendar year as this is considered bad luck. The remedy to this belief, called sukob, is to have the one marrying later pass through the back entrance of the church instead of its main doors.
