the final part of the 49th day ceremony: the burning of the clothes. mom, i know you must have been smiling down on us. thanks...

this is the last stage of the hour-long ceremony in the buddhist tradition. it is said that once you walk away from this burning of the deceased's clothes--which, in this case, was my mom's wedding hanbok that she would have worn had she been able to make the wedding--there is no looking back, for the deceased's spirit will be angry with you for not looking ahead; for looking back at the burning of the clothes, one is looking back at the life of a mortal and not ahead at the life of peace and immortality, at the life of comfort and well-being in "heaven" above.