Prayer for Sending Off the Dead

   Liangshi just told me her mother just told her that tonight there is going to be a 'prayer for sending off the dead.' Their churches all do this here. I suppose its like a funeral or a wake. They all get together in a tent outside the house of the deceased and they have a PA system thats turned up way too loud and one person sings into the PA system (usually the worst singer of the group, some old guy who smokes a lot) and drowns out all the other singers (just like at my wedding when the priest would croak into the microphone during the hymns.) They always have a tent outside the home of the deceased with people sitting inside praying no matter what the religion is. They just switch the taoist priests chanting for fellow Christians singing if they happen to be Christians. I think you can get Buddhists too if you want.

   So the whole point of the story is Liangshi's mother just told her she should come to the "prayer for sending off the dead" because they are giving out free laundry detergent and if she goes too, they can get two bags of laundry detergent. I gather traditionally the family of the deceased would provide a meal or some sort of refreshment as a display of gratitude to those who came to help send off the dead relative, now its customary to give powdered laundry soap or liquid laundry detergent or toothpaste.