Kirikulaulust, mentaliteedist ja matusekommetest
Hymns, mentality and funeral rites

Summary/Abstract: As hymnbooks are not classified as belles-lettres, hymns are usually left out of literary history. Yet, leaving aside the aesthetic criteria, hymns are a mass phenomenon of the past and, as such, they can be analysed as factors of and cues to the mentality of their time. Mentality, the attitude towards death and the funeral rites change with time. The rites de passage of the old times were designed to support the one leaving this world, whereas the funerals of today are meant exclusively for those who remain. The article discusses the tradition of keeping vigil and singing hymns at the side of the dead body. The author believes that the procedure had its roots in the folk belief and was meant to encourage the soul of the deceased when standing on the threshold of eternity.

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