Hell Money

  • Funerary Customs & Traditions
  • Less than 1 min

By Crusader1307

Unlike ''Joss Paper'' ''Hell Money'' is a related Chinese Ancestor worship function still practiced today. This form of ''currency'' is seen as a form of ''Bride'' to The Underworld or ''Diyu''. It is believed that all Spirits must go to Hell and be purified of their ''sins'' before they are allowed to reincarnate. Sometimes this process is timeless. To ensure a ''speedy stay'', it was thought that by bribing Officials in Diyu with ''money'' (burnt in the name of The Ancestor), they would be ''released faster''. Hell Money is designed to look like real currency. Most Temples do not ''recognize'' the practice, so most ''Hell Money'' offerings are performed in private.