Till Death Do Us Part: Singaporean Couple Choose Burial Vault As Their Wedding Venue
One thing's for sure, it's definitely a wedding to remember.
By Jasmine Chea — 26 Jul 2022, 05:23 PM
Most couples would opt to get married at a picturesque beach or at a fancy wedding hall, but not for 34-year-old Huang Yuanjie and his bride, 26-year-old Zhuo Xingjuan
The newlyweds have made a columbarium their choice of venue to tie the knot.
According to Shin Min Daily News, on Saturday, 23 July, Huang and Zhuo became husband and wife at the Nirvana Memorial centre, located at Choa Chu Kang, Singapore.
With Huang dressed in a traditional Tang wedding suit and Zhou in a Qun Kwa, they posed for their wedding photos in front of the columbarium niches, hand in hand.
Zhou (on the left) and Huang (on the right) posing happily beside one another.
Image via Shin Min Daily News (Facebook)While it was definitely an unconventional venue for a wedding, Huang said that the columbarium held a lot of meaning and significance for their union
You see, it was where they first met. Huang said that he came to the memorial centre for a visit whilst Zhou was there for prayers. "It was fate," he said.
Since then, Huang and Zhou began to date for several years before they registered their marriage two years ago.
Since then, it had been the couple's wish to take their wedding photos at the Nirvana Memorial center
Whilst they were all for getting hitched at the place that held so much importance to the couple, they were met with some pushback from older relatives who believed that such an auspicious event like a wedding shouldn't be held at a place where the dead are commemorated. Huang mentioned that his older relatives couldn't understand "young people's" thoughts.
Happily enough, though, the couple's parents supported their decision. "My parents are more open-minded. They feel that it's okay as long as we're happy. Even my in-laws are very supportive," said Huang.
Huang also mentioned that by doing the ceremony at the columbarium, they were killing two birds with one stone. Both of them would get the opportunity to pay their respects to their late relatives and 'inform' them of their marriage.
Attending or visiting inauspicious events and places before weddings is considered taboo in Chinese culture
There are no objective rules forbidding couples from marrying in places at funeral homes or where the remains of the dead are kept, the Chinese believe that these places commonly carry a lot of negative energy.
Some devotees believe that this bad energy could rub off on the couple and spell bad luck in their marriage's future.
Which is why couples who are about to be married should stay away from places like these. However, more and more younger couples are actually more open to getting married in unconventional places despite what the taboos suggest.
According to AsiaOne, the person in charge of the columbarium actually mentioned that this year alone, Nirvana Memorial centre has received visits from two other couples on their wedding days.
"In the past, some used to think that it was taboo to do so, but newlyweds showing up at the venue in their traditional costumes shows that the mindset of the younger generation has changed," they mentioned.
Many netizens were surprised at the couple's choice of venue but remained supportive of the happy couple and wished them a happy and lasting marriage
However, there were some netizens that still thought having a wedding ceremony in the columbarium was taboo and that doing this disrespected the place where the dead should be honoured.
"The so-called taboo is the wisdom of the ancestors that's meant for us to learn from and avoid disasters in life. Doing the opposite (of the taboo) will ultimately end in divorce," said one user.
"It can only be said that the young people today don't know how to avoid (going against the taboo). Although it is already 2022, it is still a place for the ancestors. It is better to respect it and (people) shouldn't take it too far to be different," another user wrote.
