"This is a double torment for the bereaved," said Chang Shu-bi, who lost her father to pancreatic cancer in November. "We all knew that this day would come, but we really did not know how to start [arranging his funeral]." Chang decided to hire a funeral service company. "They are professionals. They know every practice and ritual. I wanted to be assured that every step was done according to tradition, so my father could go peacefully and smoothly," she said.
More and more Taiwanese are making the same choice as Chang. According to statistics released by the Ministry of the Interior, around 138,000 people die every year islandwide. With fees per funeral ranging from US$4,000 to US$12,000, the countrys funeral industry is worth millions.
There are over 1,000 companies competing for business in Taiwan, the majority of which are small-scale operations. Thanks to the efforts initiated by the industry itself, the once despised funeral service trade has turned into a respectable business that everyone will eventually make use of.
In the past, undertakers social status was so low that only societys castaways would become morticians, and funeral parlors were usually small family businesses with eerie-looking shops scattered with empty coffins, urns and various funerary supplies for sale. "Back in the old days, when people learned I was in that business, they could barely refrain from showing their aversion toward my job," said Peter Wu, chairman of Won Ann Funeral Enterprise Organization, one of the four biggest funeral homes in the country, which was established over 70 years ago by Wus father.
Since laws and regulations governing the trade were mostly outdated and enforcement inadequate, the business gradually fell into the hands of gangsters. Morticians seldom published their service fees in advance, and the surviving families were often too grief-stricken to protest when they got the bill. Needless to say, no one ever dared to call into question the quality of the service. There were even incidents involving undertakers seizing bodies at hospitals and accident sites, preparing them for their funerals and then demanding outrageous amount of money from the relatives of the deceased.
Things started to change around the mid-1990s when the government began cracking down on unscrupulous morticians. People became more open to discuss death-related topics after several academic institutes started to address the issues and offer related courses and programs. A few funeral homes started using aggressive marketing techniques and sleek advertisements to sell niches in columbaria and pre-arranged funeral service contracts. People began investing in columbariums niches and at one point this became the hottest investment. But the craze calmed down after numerous disputes were reported, and the industry gradually went back to its normal development.
"In the past, funeral ceremonies were more religion-oriented. The emphasis was on following traditions, and little consideration was given to the deceased or the bereaved," said Wu. "But now the emphasis is on people. The point is to make the arrangements according to the wishes of the deceased and their relatives in any way they prefer," he explained.
Several reforms have been initiated by the industry itself. For one, details and prices of funerals are clearly listed and disclosed in advance. Also, morgues at major hospitals were renovated into family parlors where people can grieve over their loved ones. Advanced embalming procedures and techniques were introduced, so that the deceased can be treated with the utmost reverence and care.
In addition, the industry now offers a variety of standardized services that can be personalized according to the needs of clients. "For example, we can arrange memorial services in the form of a concert, which is probably the best way to remember a deceased musician," Wu pointed out.
Funeral directors are another reason why the publics perception toward the trade is changing for the better. As opposed to old-time morticians who were, for the most, undereducated and shabby-looking men, and whose only qualification for the job was that they were not afraid of dead bodies, the new generation, called "li-yi-shih" in Chinese or "instructor of rituals," is a totally different breed.
For starters they are, on average, much younger because more and more young people are entering the business. Modern funeral directors are not only better educated, but also better dressed and know how to behave appropriately to show their respect and consideration during services. They also learn to control their emotions so they can play the role of grief counselor if necessary.
Since people die at any time of the day, funeral directors take turns to be on call 24 hours a day so they can rush to the scene at short notice. Also, death can be pretty gruesome sometimes, but they seem to take it in their stride. "We all know that we are ushering the deceased to their afterlife. If you have this healthy mindset, then there is no need to be afraid," said Chou Yun-hsiang, a manager at Won Ann, who joined the company 15 years ago.
Funeral directors have to be familiar with the practices and rites of different cultures and religions. For example, according to Taoism, a funeral date has to be set based on the time and date of birth of the deceased, and the burial site has to be chosen according to feng shui, an ancient form of Chinese geomancy. In some places, a funeral procession is incomplete without "zhen-tou," a traditional parade of various funeral carts riding in front of the hearse. "No mistake is allowed when it comes to the final rites, because you cannot re-arrange a funeral," said Chou.
The most important qualification of all, said Wu, is a strong sense of empathy. "We have to think from the point of view of the deceased and the bereaved. How would the deceased have arranged their own funerals? What do the bereaved need?" pointed out Wu. Won Ann encourages its employees to lie inside a coffin to meditate and think with their whole hearts how they would like to be treated and remembered when the time comes. "We should all be able to choose the way we want to send off or say good-bye to our loved ones," added Wu.
In an effort to raise the quality of the trade, the Council of Labor Affairs under the Executive Yuan held the first Funeral Service Technician Examination in November. In the future, all funeral directors will have to be licensed. "The licensing system will provide better consumer protection," said an official at the Ministry of the Interior, the body governing the industry. "We are glad to see that the government has finally responded to our call to act more aggressively," said Wu.
Local funeral homes are also eyeing the huge market in mainland China. According to unofficial statistics, around 8.5 million people die in the mainland every year, and the funeral market there is estimated at US$91 billion. Although Taiwan and mainland China share the same cultural origin, the market there presents some challenges for the islands businesses.
Since mainland China has a completely different and more restricted set of laws regarding funeral arrangements, "it is still too early for Taiwans funeral operators to enter the market," said Wu, who has been receiving several mainland Chinese colleagues over the years. On the other side of the strait, a great number of traditional rites were suppressed during the Cultural Revolution. "The mainlanders are amazed at how well Taiwan has preserved the old traditions," Wu said proudly. "We are one of the few industries that will always keep its roots in Taiwan," he added.
Death has always been one of the most important issues in the human society, regardless of cultures and religions. "The funeral trade is not only a service industry but also a cultural one, and most important of all, it is humane," said Chen Chi-ming, a professor in religious study at Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei County.
Wu said that he never felt he was running a profitable business. "I believe I am doing the right thing here. Through a well-planned funeral, I can help the relatives bid farewell to the deceased one last time the way they chose it. And through the process, I can help the bereaved find their peace of mind," explained Wu. "This is a blessing for me," he concluded.
Write to Meg Chang at meg.chang@mail.gio.gov.tw