Folk Beliefs About Taboos When a Household Has a Funeral

What are the taboos observed when a family is in mourning?

In Vietnamese culture, a funeral is not only a ceremony of farewell to the deceased but also an occasion to express filial piety and reverence. Alongside this, the cycle of the funeral is surrounded by countless taboos passed down orally through many generations. These taboos reflect the worldview of earlier generations, but when placed under a modern lens they need to be understood thoroughly, avoiding a fall into absolute superstition.

The origin of the notion of 'cold breath' from the dead

One of the most common taboos is avoiding letting the sick, people with underlying illnesses, or pregnant women come near the body or attend the funeral. Folk tradition calls this avoiding the 'cold breath' from the dead, something believed to be able to worsen an illness, even to 'draw out' the life force of the living.

According to martial arts master Trần Văn Huệ, a researcher of Oriental medicine, the human body has qi and blood running in parallel, which help resist disease. When ill, the qi is weakened and tà khí (bad qi from outside) easily enters. A deceased body is cold because body heat is gone, the oxidation process stops, decomposition begins, and germs and bacteria multiply and spread into the environment. A person with weak resistance who comes near is easily attacked by bacteria, making the illness worse.

Explained through physical phenomena, a living body maintains a bioelectric current with both negative and positive charges. At death, only the negative charge remains. A healthy person standing nearby may not feel it, but a weak person will feel goosebumps from the cold, which is in essence the interaction between two opposite charges. However, Dr. Bàn Tuấn Năng (Institute of Culture and Development) acknowledges that modern science has not proven the 'cold breath' phenomenon.

The Oriental medicine view: what is the loss of yin-yang balance?

From the perspective of Oriental medicine, the taboo on 'cold breath' has a certain basis. According to the yin-yang concept, when the body is healthy, yin and yang are balanced. When ill or sick, the yin qi in the body is already higher. If additional yin qi from the funeral is taken in, the imbalance becomes severe, causing the illness to progress badly. Oriental medicine does not view illness in isolation but considers the whole, seeking the root of the problem in order to treat it thoroughly.

However, doctors at many hospitals in Hanoi affirm that the taboo on 'cold breath' has no scientific basis. Doctor Thái Hòa, Head of Internal Medicine Department 2 at K Hospital, said: 'There is no connection, no scientific evidence, between going to a funeral and an illness becoming worse'. For cancer patients, dietary restrictions relate only to treatment medication, not to funerals.

Why are mourning taboos explained through psychology and hygiene?

Although science has not proven it, the psychological impact of a funeral cannot be denied. A frail sick person is easily stirred by the mournful atmosphere, worry and grief, loss of sleep, from which health declines and illness worsens. This is a chain of psychosomatic reactions, not the result of a supernatural 'cold breath'.

In terms of hygiene, a body after death undergoes decomposition, and some chemicals and microorganisms may escape outside. However, according to experts, only some diseases spread through the air, while the rest spread through secretions, blood and saliva. Therefore, it cannot be said that all diseases spread when attending a funeral.

What other common taboos are there when in mourning?

Besides the taboo on 'cold breath', Vietnamese people hold many other notions:

• Avoiding mirrors and sharp objects in a house in mourning: To avoid reflecting the image of the dead, which causes distress to the living; sharp objects can 'cut off' the household's fortune.
• Avoiding borrowing, lending or repaying debts during the mourning period: To avoid money transactions, believed to bring misfortune and loss of wealth.
• Avoiding lavish eating, drinking and merrymaking in a house in mourning: To show respect for the deceased and keep a solemn atmosphere.
• Avoiding letting strangers into the house during the first 3 days (or 7 days): For fear that 'strange qi' will enter and affect the soul of the dead who has not yet been released.
• Avoiding pregnant women attending the funeral: To avoid the 'cold breath' affecting the fetus, and to avoid making the pregnant woman witness a scene of grief that could easily cause mental harm.
• Avoiding letting small children come near the coffin or the body: Because children's immune systems and psychology are still fragile.

What did the family in mourning taboo in the past?

Old books of customs record many taboos in a house in mourning, mainly revolving around colours, ways of dress and dealings with the outside. These are recorded customs, not mandatory advice for people today.

Phan Kế Bính in Việt Nam phong tục (1915) records: a house in mourning avoids using red objects for fear of going against propriety; the chief mourner avoids eating betel, avoids attending joyful occasions, avoids wearing silk for fear of failing in filial duty. Also according to this book, a person wearing sackcloth and hemp avoids entering another person's house. For pregnant women, the book records avoiding being near a corpse and avoiding joining the funeral procession, with the idea of fearing 'poison'.

As for a wife mourning her husband, Toan Ánh (2001) in Phong tục thờ cúng tổ tiên trong gia đình Việt Nam recounts that throughout the mourning period, the wife may not attend any merry occasion, may not go to the communal house or shrine to make offerings; in the past there was even a taboo on bathing and on dyeing the teeth. Only after the đại tường ceremony does one choose a good day, usually a trực trừ day, to perform the lễ trừ phục, burn all the mourning items, and from then on the wife returns to normal life. Toan Ánh also notes that today those taboos are much different from before.

Can a family in mourning hold a wedding?

According to old rites, a wedding was forbidden in a house in mourning, so people had to find a way around it through the custom of cưới chạy tang (a rushed wedding held because of a death). Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) in Tục thờ cúng của người Việt records that old law forbade the groom's family and the bride's family from holding a wedding ceremony when in mourning, starting from tang cơ niên (one year of mourning); therefore the two families could organise a cưới chạy tang. In the case where the groom's family brings gifts to the bride's family to ask for the marriage while the deceased has not yet been formally mourned and has not yet been encoffined, the wedding takes place hurriedly within one or two days; an auspicious day may not be necessary, but the auspicious hour must be ensured. Only a few hours after arriving at the husband's house, the funeral in the family has already begun, and the new wife must also go into mourning. Bùi Xuân Mỹ also records that after a cưới chạy tang, the couple abstain from relations with each other for 100 days.

On the same content, Song Mai and Quỳnh Trang, compilers (2006), in Phong tục thờ cúng của người Việt also recount the custom of cưới chạy tang with similar steps, and list the holding of a wedding ceremony during a period of heavy mourning among the cases of marriage considered invalid under old custom. On the point of the chief mourner receiving guests, Bùi Xuân Mỹ (2001) records according to old rites that before thành phục, that is, before putting on mourning dress, the chief mourner does not yet receive guests.

The modern view: respecting tradition, understanding its true nature

Today, many taboos are reconsidered from a scientific and humane perspective. Instead of fearing the 'cold breath', people understand that a sick person should avoid crowded places and gloomy air in order to protect both physical and mental health. Pregnant women should limit attending funerals because worry and stress can affect the fetus, not because of anything supernatural.

Preserving the rituals and taboos is also a way for descendants to express filial piety and respect for the deceased, while maintaining a beautiful aspect of community culture. However, one should not be too extreme, turning taboos into pressure that causes division or a negative effect on life. Things recorded in old books such as avoiding red objects, avoiding bathing, avoiding betel or cưới chạy tang are customs of a bygone time, recounted in order to understand, not to impose on the present.

Conclusion

The notion of taboos when a family is in mourning is a harmonious combination of folk belief, Oriental medicine philosophy and people's real worries in the face of death. Although science cannot confirm the supernatural elements, the value of the taboos lies in reminding people to live responsibly, to know how to protect their health and to respect the deceased. Let us receive them wisely: keeping tradition but not letting it become a burden of superstition.

A summary table of some common taboos when a family is in mourning according to Vietnamese folk tradition.