Hello. I am a Buddhist monk living in Kagawa, Japan.
When it comes to the color of clothing worn at funerals, black is quite common around the world. In some countries, people may wear gray.
So what color clothes are worn at funerals in Japan?
Here I will answer about the color of clothes.
Let me conclude first that in modern times (the last 100 years or so), Japanese people wear black clothes. On the other hand, in the past, funerals were white.
Introduction. In Japan, funerals are held in the Buddhist style.
Japanese people are strange and have a unique sense of religion. It is estimated that as many as 70% of Japanese people do not follow a particular religion. However, Japanese people do not reject traditional religions such as Christianity, Buddhism, and Shinto.
This is true even for the symbol of the Japanese nation, the Emperor of Japan, and the Imperial Family.
The Emperor is said to be a direct descendant of the God who created Japan. Also, from the Meiji era until the end of World War II, he was treated as a “living god” of the present God.
Although Japan is a land of gods and Shintoism is the foundation of the country, Buddhism was introduced to Japan 1,400 years ago, and emperors built huge Buddha statues and held funerals in the Buddhist style.
Until the Meiji era (1868-1912), it was the norm for all those who could hold funerals, both emperors and ordinary people, to do so in the Buddhist style.
The color of the funerals was white.
White used to be the color of funerals.
According to the Nihon Shoki, Japan’s oldest history book dating back 1,300 years, there is a record that funeral attendants and relatives of the deceased wore white.
There are two reasons for wearing white in the old days.
One is that when Buddhism was introduced to Japan from China, funeral customs were also introduced.
When Buddhism was introduced to Japan, Japan absorbed various cultures as well as the Chinese characters. It is said that the Japanese also imitated the Chinese in funeral rites, and began to use white clothing.
Another reason is that white was considered to be a color without impurity.
The sense of color changes with the times. More than 1,000 years ago in Japan, white was considered the best or sacred color. From there, white was worn to show the greatest respect to the deceased. As time went by, the image of white as a pure color was added.
Even today, the custom of white remains, with white as the base color for flowers and cloths used for decorations, as well as for the clothes used to wrap the deceased and the coffin.
As seen in Japanese period dramas, the clothes worn by samurai on their way to the place of death are also white. White was also the color for preparing for death.
Why wear black at funerals today?
At funerals held in Japan today, almost everyone wears black. Incidentally, almost 100% of funerals in Japan are Buddhist-style funerals.
There are two reasons why black clothes have been used since the Meiji era.
One is to make Japan a nation of gods, with the emperor at the center.
The emperor is a direct descendant of the god who created Japan and has been an important figure in every era in Japan. However, in the Edo period before the Meiji era, the samurai ruled for about 400 years.
In the Meiji Era, the government tried to make the emperor a living god in order to make the government more emperor-centered, and tried to separate Buddhism, which had been a part of the culture.For example, after the Meiji period, the emperor himself stopped Buddhist funeral rites and began to be buried in a Shinto style burial.
As the country changed in the Meiji era, the government began to mourn in a different way.
Another reason was the introduction of Western culture. It is as if they adopted the culture of the continent when Buddhism was introduced 1,400 years ago.
Japan, which did not actively interact with foreign countries until the end of the Edo period, did not know much about Western culture.
The Meiji government actively tried to introduce Western culture.
One of the incidents that occurred in this context was the assassination of Toshimichi Okubo in 1878. He was the first Home Ministry and the first Prime Minister of Japan.
Toshimichi Okubo’s funeral was attended by people from Western countries, and the Japanese government, wishing to promote the westernization of Japan, informed the attendees to wear black mourning clothes that incorporated Western culture.
Japan’s desire to Westernize and to create a different nation from the one that had existed until then led to a change in funeral rites from the customs of the past.
To add to this, even though the government suddenly announced that the color of mourning clothes should be changed from white to black, many people still held funerals in their traditional white clothes.
However, as more people died in Japan during World War II, white clothing began to show stains. Some companies that rented mourning clothes only provided black mourning clothes, and World War II led to the spread of black as the color for funeral mourning clothes in Japan.
In Japan today, black mourning clothes are the norm, but they have a history of about 150 years. It is not that old a tradition, as it has only been around 80 years since it became widely worn by the general public.
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The color of clothing worn by Buddhist monks.
Black was introduced as clothing worn by the deceased’s relatives and attendees. On the other hand, if you attend a Buddhist funeral in Japan, you may be surprised at how gaudy the colors are.
This section describes the colors of clothing worn by Japanese Buddhist monks at funerals.
The monk usually wears a black robe.
After Buddhism was introduced to Japan, monks were like civil servants. They were in a position to pray and serve the nation.
However, in the Kamakura period (1185-1333), some monks began to transmit Buddhism not to serve the state but for the benefit of the people. At that time, black was the color worn by those at the bottom of the hierarchy among officials.
It is said that those who believed in Buddhism and served the Buddha wore black-colored robes to show that people of any low status could encounter Buddhism.
This is the reason why monks usually wear black robes.
Why wear fancy robes at funerals?
Photo. This is a funeral I held at my temple.
All the monks are wearing their own bright colors, right?
The monk sitting in the center is wearing a special fancy robe.
Japanese Buddhist monks wear colorful clothes to express that the world of the Pure Land, where the Buddha resides, is a glittering place. At a funeral, we hope that the deceased person is born into the world with Buddha. For this reason, priests wear clothes that are reminiscent of the Pure Land.
One who wears a gray robe.
In Japan, gray mourning clothes are not recommended to be worn at funerals. However, in the tradition of Buddhist monks, gray mourning clothes may be worn at funerals.
The traditional Japanese color is nibiiro（鈍色）. In modern terms, it would be the color of a mouse or dark gray.
Nibiiro has been used since the Heian period (794-1185), more than 1,000 years ago, and was the color worn by those who were closest to the deceased.
This is the dull robe of my temple. I wear it only when my father or mother has passed away.
In Japan, the traditional white clothes are no longer worn, but the traditional gray kesa is still worn by monks when they mourn the deceased as mourners themselves.
