Funded by Heritage Research Grant, National Heritage Board, Singapore

Eds: Dr Lye Kit Ying (SUSS) and Dr Terence Heng (UoL)

Abstract

What insights can we gain from the rituals, actions and interactions around death and the afterlife? This edited collection offers a multidisciplinary perspective of how individuals and collectives “do” death and interact with the dead. Through case studies of Singaporean Chinese religion communities, the authors bring a myriad of knowledge and experience from eight different but interconnected disciplines to examine, map, document and theorise the practices of death and the afterlife. Heritage here is not just a point of nostalgia or historical snapshot, but becomes a significant resource for the shaping of and grappling with diasporic and contemporary Singaporean Chinese identities. Over a series of 11 chapters and visual essays, this collection

  • Maps contemporary Singaporean Chinese religion death and afterlife practices
  • Develops a multidisciplinary perspective on the study of death and post-death
  • Visualises the intensely material and symbolic world of grief and remembrance

This edited collection moves beyond “Western” sites of knowledge by offering a series of multidisciplinary perspectives on death practices, drawn from research with individuals, groups and organisations that identify themselves as Singaporean Chinese, and the spaces and places often related to as ‘Chinese Singapore’ (i.e. Chinese cemeteries, Chinese funeral parlours, and so on). Half the chapters in this collection originates from a 2 year-long heritage research project funded by the Singapore National Heritage Board on Singapore Chinese Cantonese funerary practices, which culminated in two public webinars and an online repository of material culture and rituals (www.chinesefuneralpractices.sg). The other half draws from original research conducted by a range of emerging and established scholars and practitioners in a variety of disciplinary fields, including Photography, Anthropology and Chinese Studies.

More information about the edited collection can be found here.

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