Let’s talk about death: Hong Kong funeral planner wants people to discuss taboo subjects openly
- Pasu Ng devotes about two days a week to life education to help city’s residents break old beliefs
- His efforts have earned him a nomination for this year’s Spirit of Hong Kong Awards
Pasu Ng Kwai-lun is not afraid of breaking taboos.
“I encourage people to talk about death openly,” said the 40-year-old, who runs a social enterprise providing after-death care and funeral planning services.
In a recent talk given at his Sham Shui Po office, Ng discussed with attendees what should be said to someone who had lost a loved one. Platitudes should be avoided, he said, citing the expression “I know how you feel” as an example.
During the session, he also shared with his audience an extensive list of Cantonese euphemisms for “die”, which, in his view, attested to Hong Kong people’s aversion to talking about death explicitly.
But Ng, who was in the embalming business, and formerly in charge of the dissection laboratory at Chinese University, is eager to help the city’s residents overcome such squeamishness.
As the founding president of the Hong Kong Life and Death Studies Association, he now devotes about two days a week to life education to help break this old belief.
The annual event, co-organised by the South China Morning Post and property developer Sino Group, honours the achievements of remarkable people whose endeavours may otherwise go unnoticed.
Chu Fung-ling of Ground Culture recommended Ng for the Spirit of Culture category, which recognises individuals who inspire those to preserve Hong Kong’s legacy or celebrate its heritage and traditions.
Ng noted that local funerary customs comprised a range of practices adopted by previous generations, but said lifestyle changes warranted another look at traditional lavish funerals to send loved ones off on their final journey. The rituals, after all, were about letting the deceased depart with dignity and helping the bereaved come to terms with the loss, he said.
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Believing perseverance is the key to changing old customs, Ng has made use of various channels, including social media and picture books, to raise public awareness of the issues of life and death. His association has also conducted online workshops on a range of related topics such as mental health, support for the elderly and end-of-life care.
“We need to remove the barriers bit by bit,” he said.
