Workshop details: Traditional Chinese families that practiced ancestor worship believed the soul of someone who died consisted of two parts: the po (relating to yin energy and the grave) and the hun (relating to yang energy and ancestral tablets Chinese families would keep in their homes). According to Chinese folk beliefs, a soul is split when a person dies. Part of it goes to an afterlife to eventually be reborn. The other component of a person’s soul (the hun) remains close to their ancestral tablet, a shrine for ancestors in a traditional Chinese family’s home. This reflects the belief that ancestors remain among the living to a degree even after they die. Chinese families would worship them accordingly. This involved practices immediately after a family member’s passing, as well as over the years after their death. In this meditative and creative session of affirmation, Wingshan Smith will lead rituals that will support you to re-root yourself to stories untold or imagined and reconnect yourself to a unique approach to ancestry. Bring an object that has significance to you and an offering of fruit to the collective shrine.

Location: Haarlem Gallery, The Red Lion Hotel, Wirksworth.