Cultural Analysis
Familism and ceremony culture in the lives of Koreans
The culture of ancestor worship ceremonies is representative of the traditional worldview and passion of Koreans. In fact, unique aspects of Korean familism can be found in this culture of ancestor worship. Ancestor worship ceremonies are ways of practicing the Confucian virtue of "filial piety." Korean filial piety refers to taking care of one's parents while they are alive and performing ancestor worship ceremonies after they are deceased. A foreign an thropologist once noted that Koreana are the longest living people on earth. The reason is because one's descendants remain in memory for a long time through ancestor worship ceremonies long after they have died. These customs and beliefs are all rooted in the Confucianist concepts of eternal life.