Funerary Practices
| Funerary Practices | |
|---|---|
| Moravska State Archive · 1976 | |
| Classification | Rituals and Calendar |
| Status | canon |
| Last updated | 2026-11-03 |
| Archive source | 06 Rituals and Calendar/Funerary Practices.md |
| Length | 905 words (5 min read) |
| Internal links | 4 outgoing, 3 incoming |
| Sources | 3 cited |
Contents
[hide]A Moravskan funeral is a public act of the line. The state permits the priest or a civil officer. The family runs the rite.
The first hours [edit]
The family follows 4 steps at once.
- The washing. Women of the line wash the body with water and wine.
- The dress. The body wears clean clothes and no shoes. A sailor wears a clean shirt and a rope belt.
- The coin. A copper coin goes into the right hand. The coin pays the old ferry.
- The watch. The line sits with the body for 1 night and 1 day. A candle burns at the head.
The family covers the mirrors in the house. The rule is old and the reason is not written. A common answer: the dead must not see the line.
The burial [edit]
| Element | Coast | Interior |
|---|---|---|
| Grave | A stone-cut grave in the cliff terrace | An earth grave in the village ground |
| Marker | A white stone with wide letters | A wooden cross, then a stone after 1 year |
| Position | The head to the east | The head to the east |
| Objects | A coin, a rope length, a copper plate | A coin, a pot, a seed bag |
| Speech | A short speech by a kinsman | A speech, a song, a lament |
A party member who served the state receives a civil funeral. A red flag covers the coffin and a party officer speaks. The family often holds a church rite at home on the same day.
The 40 days [edit]
The line holds 4 meals after the death.
| Meal | Day | Content |
|---|---|---|
| The third | Day 3 | Bread, wine, a warm dish. The closest line |
| The ninth | Day 9 | A wider line and a neighbour |
| The fortieth | Day 40 | The full line. The name returns |
| The year | Day 365 | The stone is set. A small meal |
The 40th day matters most. Until that day the family does not speak the name of the dead. It says "our own" or "he" or "she". See Taboos.
At the 40th meal the eldest of the line says the name once. The table answers "God forgive him" or "may the earth be light". After that the name is free.
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Notice:
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Funeral line
"The sea took the man. The house keeps the name."
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The drowned [edit]
A person lost at sea has no body. The family holds the rite without a grave.
The coast has a special object for this case. The family makes an empty boat: a boat 40 cm long, cut from a plank and painted black. A candle stands in it.
The line takes the boat to the shore at dusk. A kinsman pushes it into the water and says the name once. The boat burns and sinks. The family then has a place to visit, even if it is only the shore.
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Note:
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The stone without a body
A widow cuts a stone with the name and the words "he is in the pondul". See Lexicon for the difference between pondul and more.
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The grave and the mason [edit]
A mason cuts the letters with wide spacing. The style is old and it is not the state style. See Script and Typography.
A good stone carries 4 things.
- The name and the two dates.
- A trade mark. A hammer, an anchor, a sickle.
- One line from the family.
- A copper plate for a sailor, fixed with 4 rivets.
A copper plate lasts 100 years. The Medenik plant sells the plate at cost to a family of a sailor. The rule is informal and it is old.
The state and the grave [edit]
The state gives a burial permit and owns the cemetery. The fee is 12 leva for a grave and 4 leva a year for the plot.
The state also sets 3 rules.
- A grave is 1.2 m by 2.2 m.
- A stone is no taller than 90 cm.
- A grave with no fee for 5 years is reused.
The third rule is the hard one. A poor line loses the grave and the name with it.
The widow [edit]
A widow wears black for 1 year. She keeps the house in the coast and she keeps the pier share. See Coastal Matriarchies.
A widower wears a black band for 40 days. He does not keep the house in the coast. He moves to a room or to a kinsman.
Belief about the dead [edit]
Four beliefs are common and they cross class.
- A dead person stays near the house for 40 days.
- A candle that goes out alone means a visit.
- A dream of the dead means a request. The family gives bread or wine.
- A person who died badly needs a second meal at 6 months.
The party calls the beliefs "a survival of the old order". A party officer follows the first two beliefs and denies the third.
Weak points [edit]
- A town line is small. A funeral has 12 people and no singer.
- A civil funeral divides a family that holds a church rite at home.
- A grave fee goes unpaid when a line moves to another town.
- A drowned sailor has no grave and the shore is a poor substitute.
Sources[edit]
- Monograph J. Cornwell (1976). Settlement and custom in the old coast. Zaligrad University Press. ZUP-1976-6875. Cited in The widow, The drowned. See also Religion.
- Statistical compendium Archive Clerk 14 (1974). Comecon statistical yearbook, 1976. Comecon Secretariat. COM-1974-1743. Cited in The first hours, The grave and the mason. See also Taboos.
- Official document Archive Clerk 14 (1972). Ministry circular on regional administration in Skalina. Ministry of Culture. MOC-1972-9414. Cited in The burial, Belief about the dead. See also Rites of Passage.
References[edit]
Documents in the archive that cite or cross-reference Funerary Practices:
- ^ "Religion". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
- ^ "Rites of Passage". Rituals and Calendar, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
- ^ "Taboos". Culture, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.