Mortuary | Mourning Traditions

When a loved one passes away, it is an emotional period marked by understandable sadness and grief. The mourning is shared not only by family members, but also by work colleagues, neighbors, childhood friends and others the deceased may have met along the way. However, as can be seen in a mortuary, the way that different people and cultures handle their grief can be very different. What is respectful in one society may be totally out of place in another. At Mountain View Funeral Home, we see families from every walk of life with varying traditions when it comes to funerals and mourning. Regardless of how a family chooses to mourn, our staff provides the utmost in respect for everyone.

Mourning Garments

In our mortuary, we are very careful to adhere to the mourning requirements of each family. While many people have similar practices, not everyone’s is the same. For instance, since the Roman Empire, when mourners wore a dark colored toga, many believe that black is the color to be worn while in mourning. However, in Asia, they people wear bright colors while in India those grieving must wear white clothes. In Thailand, they wear black but in the Philippines, it’s white or black.

Various Religious Mourning Traditions

Respectful clothing is important, but it’s even more important for a mortuary to adhere to the mourning rituals of each religion. For those of the Christian faith, there may be different practices based on denomination. They might include removing statues and icons and wearing purple, or liturgical colors, during Holy Week and Lent. In Hinduism, there are strict rules regarding ritual impurity, which begins with cremation and lasts for 12 days. In Judaism, the mourners will rend their garments, cover mirrors with a cloth and sit on the floor or low stool during the seven-day period of “Shiva,” which begins after burial. Visitors may come and express their condolences and bring food to the family during that period.

At Mountain View Funeral Home, we understand how difficult this period of burial and mourning is and we are here to help in any way possible.