Since ancient times, human death has been surrounded by a special mystery. It is no coincidence that at present there are many signs and superstitions associated with the funeral.
Currently, various prescriptions are associated with the funeral of the deceased person, the implementation of which is considered mandatory in the minds of the people. However, some of the practices are superstitions and are completely unnecessary from the point of view of the Orthodox faith and Christian culture.
The practice of curtaining mirrors at the funeral (and within forty days after death) of the deceased is very common. Very rarely there are families that do not adhere to such a tradition. However, from the point of view of Orthodoxy, the practice of curtaining a mirror at a funeral is not only optional, but speaks of a person's false idea of the soul from the point of view of the Orthodox faith.
Proponents of the practice of curtaining mirrors at a funeral justify this by the fact that the mirror itself is a window, an “entrance” to the other world. In order that the soul does not leave the earth ahead of time through a similar "portal", mirrors and curtains. Another theory suggests that the soul can see its reflection in the mirror and get scared. Such explanations have nothing to do with the Orthodox tradition.
According to Orthodox teaching, it is not necessary to curtain mirrors at a funeral. The Church proclaims to people that the human soul is perfectly intelligent. It is absurd to say that a rational soul is afraid of its own image. In addition, Orthodoxy does not see in the mirror any portal to the other world through which the soul can be lost in the looking glass. All this belongs to the realm of mysticism and in this context is completely alien to the Orthodox worldview. The believer understands that such actions do not affect the soul of the deceased. The main thing for a deceased person is the fulfillment of the prayer of the deceased and the work of mercy in memory of the deceased.
Often, such superstitions, like some other popular practices, replace the Christian meaning of remembrance. People begin to pay attention to external actions, forgetting about the spiritual foundations of the meaning of wires to the last path of loved ones.
It is also necessary to say that the curtains of mirrors at the funeral can still take place if it is physically and mentally unpleasant for living people to see the coffin displayed. Some begin to feel some discomfort. In this case, you can curtain the mirrors in the room, but this is not done because of fear for the soul, but for the practical convenience of living people.
