Death and transformation are a key element of the Chinese culture and psyche. Along with marriage, death is the most important event in the life of the family and individual. Death marks the transition from life to another world. It allows the family to express its strength and solidarity by coming together to share in the funerary rites of passage. Death requires that the attention of the living be focused upon the larger meaning of life and family. For the Chinese, family identity is primary to individual identity. The clan name comes first, followed by the individual's name. The position of birth, i.e. elder son, elder daughter, has an identity of its own that transcends the individual's hopes, wishes, and desires. When a member of the family dies, a reordering occurs. Thus the funerary rites serve this purpose.

In ancient China the world after life had three major possibilities:

1. Heaven as a divine ancestor.
2. Earth as a hungry ghost or lost soul.
3. Immortality as a Taoist immortal.

The most auspicious result was to become a divine ancestor and take up residence in heaven. This was auspicious from the viewpoint of the family. Taoist priests would make a series of dots upon the tablet representing the body of the deceased and then the characters for the family name and individual name would be written. In this way the ancestor was present in the tablet. They were able to hear the daily prayers and problems of the living because this helped the family. Heaven was composed of a heavenly bureaucracy much like that on earth. The Lord on High, Sheng Ti, was the Emperor of Heaven and his ministers controlled the different heavenly functions. The ancestor was the representative of the family who influenced the functionaries of heaven in order to benefit or to punish the family. The living family in return offered daily sacrifices in the form of incense and food at the family altar.

Not all persons could become divine ancestors. Only those who lived a reasonable long life and died of natural causes could become the family representatives in heaven. Those who died unnaturally or violently met with a different fate. "Hungry ghosts" or guei were the souls of those who died violently or at an unnatural time of life. Due to the means or location of death, these souls were not cared for and became wandering, semi-conscious entities. These "orphan souls" were resentful and confused and attempted to injure and possess other living beings. They were doomed to this fate unless freed by an adept at exorcism or by the annual ceremony of the Universal Salvation. Until then they wandered the Earth making trouble for the living.

The best of all possible outcomes for the individual was to become an Immortal. Through extensive purification practices and meditation the spirit soul of the person was consolidated so that upon death they could consciously leave the body and retain powers of movement and form. The Immortal would take up residence in heaven and perform meritorious acts to relieve the suffering of the people and to inspire others to achieve immortality. While this is the best fate for the individual, the family loses its direct representative in heaven; the Immortal must help all people, not just the family members.

These three possibilities were expanded with the entry of Buddhism into China around 10 A.D. The Buddhists brought the idea of reincarnation to China. Now an individual could be reborn as another individual. However, this did not mean that the family would necessarily benefit from this rebirth. The impact of Buddhism was resisted in part due to its perceived negative impact upon the family and its fortunes.

The Ceremony of Universal Salvation is performed in the Seventh Moon period (Oct.) to honor and free the "hungry ghosts" who wander the Earth. With wars and all of the other calamities the planet begins to accumulate too many troublesome souls. In order to preserve the living and avoid calamity they need to be released to the underworld. The ritual involves a large ceremonial feast and ritual that is performed to both Taoist and Buddhist priests. The souls are invited to the feast and then each family or person lights a candle, which is then floated on a river, lake or ocean. The candles attract the souls to the underworld called the Yellow Springs. There they enter under the control of the Lord of Hell where they remain until they are reabsorbed into the Tao. This prevents them from getting into further trouble and ends the worry of living relatives about the fate of their deceased loved ones. Following the evening ceremony, the next day the gravesites of the ancestors in heaven are visited, cleaned, and made offerings to. This prepares the family for the harvest and for the Winter Solstice where the rebirth of the light giving yang energy is celebrated.

The major contribution of these ceremonies is to reaffirm the family identity and to maintain the transition in order of succession. It also reconnects the people with the seasonal cycles of the Tao reminding them of their true place in nature.