This happened last year at a void deck in
Bishan. A colleague of mine was carrying the
urn containing the ashes of his grandfather.
He tripped over something and fell. He accidentally
broke the urn, and all the ashes spilt out. There
was a slight breeze then and before he could recover
the contents from the ground, part of the ashes had
already been blown away.
It had been a long period since the grandfather died.
But the ashes of the grandfather had been kept for
Worshipping purpose. It was a family custom to pray to
the ancestors, for the ancestors would then protect
the family from harm. The urn had been placed on an altar.
But the move to Bishan changed things. My colleague
and his family had live at Ghim Moh before. It was suggested that
the urn containing the grandfather’s ashes be stored at the crematorium
instead. This would save the mother trouble when she cleaned the house,
particularly the altar area. She could use the feather duster or
vacuum cleaner without fearing that she would be disturbing the grandfather’s
spirit. They planned to replace the urn with a picture and a clan name plaque.
That was why my colleague was carrying the in the first place. After breaking it, he
Was so worried. His family members scolded him severely as well.
They didn’t speak to him after that for a few weeks.
But the worst was yet to come. There was one night when my colleague dreamt of
His grandfather. The grandfather told him he had been the word grandson, causing
His soul to be dispersed with the wind. He warned my colleague that he would come
to a tragic end.
This dream recurred for several nights. I could see the anxiety my colleague was in.
At work, he could not concentrate. Every morning, I saw him with bags under his eyes,
So he must have been sleeping terribly. His appetite got so bad I think the must have lost
weight. I told him what Confucius said: “Spiritual things were difficult to grasp”. So I advised
him not to be overly superstitious. It didn’t seem to help.
Luckily, his family members stepped in. They hired a group of Taoist priest to pray to the
Grandfather. They performed rituals which were supposed to appease the souls of the dead.
The dreams ceased, and my colleague recovered. He appears to have forgotten the whole incident.
But we never talk about what happened again. I think he is still afraid.
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