Joss paper (simplified Chinese: 金纸; traditional Chinese: 金紙; pinyin: jīnzhǐ; literally "gold paper", Chinese: 陰司紙; pinyin: yīnsīzhǐ, Chinese: 紙錢; pinyin: zhǐqián, or simplified Chinese: 冥币; traditional Chinese: 冥幣; pinyin: míng bì; literally "shade/dark money" / Vietnamese: vàng mã in the North or giấy tiền vàng bạc in the South), also known as ghost money, are sheets of paper and/or paper-crafts made into burnt offerings which are common in traditional Chinese religious practices including the veneration of the deceased on holidays and special occasions. Joss paper, as well as other papier-mâché items, are also burned in traditional Chinese funerals, to ensure that the spirit of the deceased has lots of good things in the afterlife.
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Famous quotes containing the word paper:
“A cow does not know how much milk it has until the milkman starts working on it. Then it looks round in surprise and sees the pail full to the brim. In the same way a writer has no idea how much he has to say till his pen draws it out of him. Thoughts will then appear on the paper that he is amazed to find that he possessed. “How brilliant!” he says to himself. “I had no idea I was so intelligent.” But the reader may not be so im pressed.”
—Gerald Branan (1894–1987)