Marriage often symbolizes the sacred bond between two living individuals and their families. But in some remote regions of China, this age-old concept takes a haunting twist—girls are sometimes married to corpses. This ancient tradition, known as ghost marriage, has survived for over 3,000 years.
The reasoning behind this ritual might seem shocking to outsiders. Rooted in superstition, ghost marriages are believed to prevent the deceased from enduring loneliness in the afterlife. Families of unmarried dead sons or daughters arrange these unusual unions to ensure companionship for their loved ones beyond the grave.
In most cases, the family hires a Feng Shui master to find a suitable match—much like a living matchmaking process. Once the pairing is decided, the deceased is exhumed, dressed in ceremonial attire, and the marriage is carried out with rituals similar to those in traditional weddings. A woman might marry a long-dead groom, or vice versa, in what locals see as a gesture of spiritual peace.
“Some people believe that if a married woman’s tomb is built near an unmarried man’s grave, he won’t remain single in his next life,” say locals who continue to support the tradition. The ceremonies, though macabre, are often elaborate and expensive. Families are known to spend significant sums of money to organize them.
Although the Chinese government has banned ghost marriages, the practice still persists in certain rural areas, carried out quietly and sometimes illegally. Despite modern laws and changing mindsets, cultural beliefs and ancestral traditions continue to influence such extraordinary rituals.
In essence, ghost marriages reflect a belief system that blends respect for the dead with deep-rooted superstition. For some, these ceremonies are not morbid oddities, but a final act of love—ensuring no soul crosses over alone.