My Diary

Ancestor worship is a religious practice based on the belief that bereaved family members have their continued existence. The act is a way to respect and to provide for the deceased welfare in the afterlife, which is envisioned as being similar to the earthly life. Being an important aspect of the Chinese tradition and practise, the social function of ancestor worship is therefore to cultivate kinship values like filial piety, family loyalty and continuity of the family lineage. Ancestor worship is a family affair, it is held at home, ancestral temple and consists of offering joss stick, serving as communication and greetings to the deceased, prayers and offering items before tablet. Rituals are performed to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Taoist ceremony for passed on formed part of ancestor worship which bereaved family members of the deceased would engage the service of taoist priest for prayers and acts of penance for the dead so as to offer the deceased a q

In ancient China, poverty problem was a major issue in the country. Due to the lack of medical knowhow, it was not easy to bring up kids who susceptible to major diseases and illnesses. In view of their lives being threatened, many parents approach taoist priests for antidote so that to get rid of so called 'dirty' elements. They believed that every child's health condition was affected by thirty-six gate （三十六闗） and seventy-two force （七十二煞） . As a result, a ritual of crossing the seven-star bridge would be performed. With the advances in medical technologies today, such rituals have become less and less popular. However, some major temples and sintua still follow the practice. The participants are not only children, but adults and even the elderly are joining in the queue for a common purpose, ie , pursue for good blessings. Normally, the seven-star bridge is made of wooden or steel with walkway that has a total of seven steps. On the bridge, you could see five diffe