I know viewings are like 9 hours a day. What is the belief or is it cultural that a family member/relative must always be there in the same room with the deceased. This is how it is in Croatia, and we continue the same tradition here in U.S. but why is this a tradition or where did it come from?
2007-09-12 10:30:44 · 3 answers · asked by Born Valentine's Day 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
Y'know - I'm really not sure WHERE the tradition came from...
I know that in Europe the tradition of the "wake" came from olden times when people would be found & presumed dead (when they were actually unconscious - drunk or temporarily slipped into comas & the like) - and the bodies were laid out at home for a period of several days (...just to make sure the person was really dead!) ...and it wasn't uncommon for folk to get up at their own wakes to find a party going on.
Maybe "viewings" came from a similar practice... or maybe it was simply a way for close friends to "see the person" one last time before the burial & to confirm for themselves (with their own eyes) that the person was dead.
2007-09-12 10:47:31 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
many yrs ago, it was sometimes customary to wake the dead in their own home. it could last for a few days. perhaps that's where the custom of someone from the family always being in the viewing room. however, now it is basically done as a courtesy to those paying their respects so that they can say hello and such.
2007-09-12 19:31:48 · answer #2 · answered by racer 51 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
We have this same custom here in the South. A family member is always there to greet the visitors, and accept their condolences.
2007-09-12 18:37:29 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋