Placing the Body in the Coffin
“As we commit him to the grave, let us pray the Lord grant him rest forever.”
— Stikheron from the Funeral Service
Our love for departed loved ones is not expressed by lavish memorial meals or ornate gravestones. What the departed need most of all is prayer.
In Rus’, the dead were traditionally buried in hollowed-out, unpainted wooden coffins. The modern custom of upholstering coffins with fabric is also permissible. However, bright colors should not be used, and the crucifix (depiction of Christ) must not be placed on the lid. Instead of a crucifix, an eight-pointed cross is sewn on.
The prepared coffin is blessed with holy water or censed with incense. If possible, a priest should be invited — he will read the prayers appointed for the occasion. When the priest proclaims the dismissal after the litanies, at that moment the body of the deceased is placed in the coffin, while the singers chant:
“To the servant of God (Name), who hath fallen asleep, to whom we now grant placement in the tomb: Eternal memory, eternal memory, eternal memory.”
Then the Trisagion (“Holy God”) is sung in an extended melody, and the deceased is covered up to the chest with a white cloth and with the funeral veil brought from the church, which bears an eight-pointed cross. According to the explanation of Blessed Simeon, the funeral veil signifies that the departed is under the protection and shelter of the Holy Church.
In the home or church, the coffin is placed so that the deceased faces the holy icons — feet toward the front corner — lying in such a way as to gaze, even in death, upon the face of God, his Righteous Judge. An icon or a cross is placed upon the chest, on top of the veil, over the hands. At the head of the coffin, or beside it on a candlestand, a candle is placed. If possible, candles are affixed on all four sides of the coffin or placed on candlestands surrounding it.
When all is completed, the memorial Tropar is said:
“O Lord, give rest to the soul of Thy departed servant…” — three times, with fifteen bows.
If the laying in the tomb is done without a priest, then after the initial bows, the Trisagion is read, followed by the Our Father, then the Tropars: With the spirits of the righteous…, forty Lord, have mercy, the prayer Remember, O Lord God, the dismissal, Eternal memory, and fifteen bows for the repose. The order of actions remains the same as with a priest.
A cloth is placed in the coffin with the deceased — the one with which he wiped his lips after receiving Holy Communion.