Qing Ming prayers by proxy

Paying respects: Filepic showing monks leading a prayer ceremony at the Than Hsiang Temple in Penang.

GEORGE TOWN: In an effort to ease the backlog of Qing Ming obligations and assist families in paying respects to the deceased, a temple in Bayan Lepas is offering to hold ancestor veneration ceremonies for a fee.

Than Hsiang Temple ceremony coordinator Chan Chee Keong said those whose ancestors had a tablet or ashes within the temple could now request for ancestor veneration to be performed on their behalf.

“We started this initiative last year when many families were unable to cross states to observe Qing Ming.

“This is to help those who are unable to visit the temple to pay their respects personally.

“We offer a number of packages at fees ranging from RM20 to RM37, where families can choose the number of dishes or fruits and desserts to be served before their ancestral tablet.

“All dishes served will be vegetarian, ” Chan said, adding that the temple has received some 50 bookings for the veneration service.

“Although we will open the temple for those who plan to come during Qing Ming, it will be limited to two people per family.

“Each family will get 15 minutes to pay their respects and, at any one time, we will only allow 30 people in the hall.

“If there are already 30 people in the hall, the others will have to queue up and wait for their turn, ” he added.

Chan hoped that the public would be mindful of the standard operating procedures and adhere to the rules on Qing Ming.

Meanwhile, Penang United Hokkien Cemeteries chairman Ong Teik Khim said many columbarium and cemetery management bodies were worried about difficulties in ensuring that visitors adhere to the SOP.

“As we know, many Chinese families will probably attend to tomb sweeping, and this will usually be in the hills, in the open spaces.

“This may cause difficulties as we need to find a way to ensure that the entire area is monitored, ” he said.

It was announced on Friday that cemeteries and columbariums management bodies would not be compounded if devotees were found to have violated the SOP.

Instead, the devotees who violated the SOP will be compounded.

National Unity Minister Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique said National Security Council clarified that the devotees themselves need to ensure adherence to the SOP.

During Qing Ming, families are allowed to do tomb sweeping with not more than six members present at any one time.

The time allowed for each ritual is 90 minutes.

For columbariums, families are allowed to visit according to the size and capacity of the columbarium.

A period of 60 minutes is allowed for each family, with sanitisation to be carried out every 30 minutes.