The Return Of Spirits

It is absolutely not an easy task even if one just wants to die without burden. No matter how magnanimous the departed is, there will be much to be experienced allegedly for the final path of the material life. For instance, "the return of the spirit" has long marked a milestone for the shift of our lifeline.

Chinese traditions opine not only in the existence of spirit, but also their return, awaiting the admittance of another world at the "original" home. The night of return, (it will not happen in the morning), is known as the "return of spirit". The relatives of the departed are required to prepare various dishes. Then, they must go back the bedroom and lock the door early. They mustn't leave the room or they will meet some terrible ghosts for picking up the dead. Even though they are badly in need of peeing, they just can't do it. After all, there is always a good excuse and a kind of respect for bed-wetting out of such reasons ......

The motive of spirits' return is for visiting their families, who shouldn't be feared under any circumstances. Actually, it is the ghost pickers that create "danger". I had a rough impression: a terrible accident happened 10 years ago, when everyone in the house was shouting for "the return of spirit" and eventually burnt to death. The comment afterward was clear, "was there any need for such severe punishment by their predecessors?" The identity crisis seem to have been undermined by sheer anxiety.

The fact is, people experiencing the return of spirit would tell you it is just a silent night and tradition by all means. Of course, a custom doesn't mean a great deal. But I do hope it can be more than that. Just imagine, the departed comes back and appears before you! But there is no telling whether my heart is ready for such a "surprise".

The horror brought about by the return can be classified as a kind of misconception. No matter it is our relative or not, the spirit per se is horrific. We shouldn't forget it is our beloved, even though we observe them to be taken away by ghost-pickers. We create the terror, not them. For me, the saddest situation is, when the spirit comes back, all it can find is the paleness of the living people, trembling with dread......

Perhaps bed-wetting no longer happens to us now - as we should now be well prepared for that sort of thing. But most importantly, we must make ourselves well-equipped for the return of spirit, who was actually our dearest......

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