Many people know that 9 days after death are important, but not everyone knows what they mean. Probably, many people wondered why order service in the church and arrange a wake.
So, you need to remember what exactly 9 days after death is called "uninvited", since guests are not invited to it. Only relatives and close friends of the deceased can come to the wake to honor his bright memory.
What happens 9 days after death?
Having gathered at the memorial meal, you need to read the prayer "Our Father", after which you must at least eat a spoon of kutya (preferably consecrated in the church).
Despite the fact that after the death has passed 9 days on the table there should be no alcohol , and behind him - fun, laughter, cheerful songs and profanity. Also it is forbidden to recall the "bad" qualities of the deceased.
Wrong think those who are convinced that eating on the table plays a big role in the memorial day. This is wrong. It is best to arrange a modest meal without refined dishes. After all, it does not matter which dishes are on the table this day, and more importantly, that people who respect and long for the departed have come, and are ready at any moment to give a helping hand to his relatives.
What does it mean 9 days after death?
What happens to the soul on the 9th day after death, worries many. As they say in Orthodox writings, the soul after death leaves the human body and does not leave the world of the living not for 9 days, but until 40 days have elapsed. But for 40 days the soul is there, where before she lived in the body. Some say that after the funeral, relatives feel someone's presence in the house.
The first day after the death of a person, his soul is shocked, because she can not understand how she can exist without a body. It is from these considerations in India that it is customary to destroy the body. If the physical body is a long time dead, then the soul will always be near it. If the body is given to the earth, then the soul will see its decomposition.
On the third day the soul gradually begins to recover, get used to being without a body, walk around the neighborhood, and then return to the house. Relatives should not hysterically suffer for the deceased and sob loudly, as the soul hears everything, and experiences all the tortures of relatives on themselves. At this time it is necessary to pray all the time for the soul of the deceased, trying to send her out of this world. At this moment, she is experiencing psychological pain, is experiencing and does not understand how to be further. Therefore, by my relatives' prayers, I help her to calm down.
So what happens to the soul on the 9th day after death and what traditions are associated with this day? The funeral of the deceased is held in honor of the nine angelic ranks that serve the Most High and ask him to have mercy on the deceased. After three days the soul is accompanied by an angel who enters her into the gates of paradise and shows an unearthly beauty of the abode. In this state the soul is for six days, forgetting about the sorrow that was felt during the period
But the fate of the soul is decided only on the fortieth day, when the worship of the Most High it will ascension for the third time. And then God will decide her fate, weighing her good and bad deeds on the scales.
The relatives should pray all this time, thereby smoothing the sins of the deceased - this will be most important for him.