For the part of encoffinment, funeral procession and burial, geomancer is often invited to choose the "lucky day and hour" and the ideal place for burial.
At the very night of funeral procession, Taoists are invited to chant scriptures for one to seven days so as to release the soul from purgatory.
After the burial, the offspring of the deceased shall guard in the funeral hall day and night or in front of the tomb for some time, which is called "to observe mourning". Other than inhumation mentioned above, cremation, "water burial", "open burial" and "hanging-coffin burial" were also practiced in ancient China.
The funeral rites in China are originated from the concept of undying spirit and the worship for ancestors. The Confucian School regards funeral rites as embodiment of ethics. Buddhism, which is popular in China, even takes death as the start of reincarnation. Because of this, corresponding elements are added into funeral.