Feature丨5800 “gravestones” in virtual cemetery

2024-10-21 02:35 来源：网络点击：

Feature丨5800 “gravestones” in virtual cemetery

Death and Remembrance

On July 3, 2011, an account called "逝者如斯夫dead" (loosely translated to "the departed pass like a fleeting moment") was created on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform similar to Twitter. The blogger behind the account would post stories of the departed, received through submissions from internet users or publicly available information, in the form of "obituaries" for people to mourn and remember their loved ones. Over the course of 12 years, the account has posted over 5800 Weibo posts and was operated by three individuals.

The theme of "逝者如斯夫dead" is death and remembrance. On the account's page, among the people who have passed away, there are fathers, daughters, lovers, and friends, who have died from illnesses or accidents. The account provides a space for those left behind to honor and grieve their loved ones, as well as a platform to remember those whose stories might otherwise be forgotten.

In 2019, a netizen asked Li Bing (pseudonym), the then operator of the account, why he do this.

"To create a memorial for every ordinary person," Li Bing responded.

Against Forgetting

Founded by Lin Dongping, "逝者如斯夫dead" posted its first obituary on July 3, 2011, after the death of a well-known internet personality moved him, a then IT professional. The first post reads, "@Wu Zheng, former Vice Editor-in-Chief of IFeng.com and current COO of Baishitong, passed away suddenly from a heart attack yesterday at the age of 39."

Thereafter, Lin Dongping began to pay attention to the story of the deceased. Under Lin's management, the account gradually gained tens of thousands of followers.

After he passed on the account to Li Bing in 2017, Li Bing hoped to expand its impact. He created a new topic called "Overcoming Depression" to provide relevant knowledge and support for people suffering from depression.

In the summer of 2020, the account welcomed its third operator, Wu Ziyu.

For Wu, "Death is not the end of life; forgetting is." She believes that "逝者如斯夫dead" provides a place for the families of the departed to cherish their memories.

Beyond Time and Space

Wu Ziyu, its current operator, also runs an online memorial MiniApp called "Starry Sky of Memory". In this virtual space, people can light up a star to bid farewell and express their feelings to their deceased loved ones. The app has attracted tens of thousands of people who use it to express their feelings and grief.

For the future development of the MiniApp, Wu plans to introduce more new technologies such as ChatGPT and VR, allowing users to "communicate" with the deceased in a more realistic environment.

Each night before going to sleep, Zhu Jie (pseudonym), who is 28 years old, communicates with her deceased grandfather in "Starry Sky of Memory". She honors him by lighting a candle and presenting a flower on the MiniApp.

According to Professor Hu Yian from Guangzhou University, one of the first people in China to teach a course on "Death Education", "逝者如斯夫dead" offers an excellent way to educate people about death. It helps people realize the impermanence of life and cherish the present moment.

He believes that the "virtual cemetery" meets the needs of the times. As more and more people move away from their families and hometowns to seek work, this platform has become a substitute for physical graveyards, providing an opportunity to remember and mourn loved ones from any distance.

特别报道|虚拟公墓里的5800块“墓碑”

死亡和思念

2011年7月3日，微博（类似推特的中国社交媒体）上一个名为账号“逝者如斯夫dead”开通，博主会根据网友投稿或公开资料，将一个个逝者故事，以“讣闻”的形式发布在互联网上，接受亲朋好友的缅怀以及陌生人的悼念。创立12年，这个账号发布超过5800条微博，经手三位运营者。

“逝者如斯夫dead”的主题是死亡和思念。点开“逝者如斯夫dead”的主页，那些逝去的人中有父亲、女儿、爱人、朋友，他们或死于疾病，或死于意外。

2019年，曾有网友向当时的“逝者如斯夫dead”的运营者李冰（化名）提问：“您为何要做这个？”

“为每个平凡人‘立碑’。”李冰答道。

对抗遗忘

林东平是“逝者如斯夫dead”的创始人。2011年7月3日，一位互联网知名人士的死亡触动了在IT行业工作的他。当天他发布了“逝者如斯夫dead”的第一条贴文，“@吴征，原凤凰网副总编辑、现百事通运营官，昨天突发心脏病去世，享年39岁。”

此后，林东平开始关注逝者的故事，在他的运营下，“逝者如斯夫dead”逐渐积累了数万粉丝。

2017年，林东平将账号托管，新接手的负责人李冰希望“逝者如斯夫dead”能发挥更大的作用。于是他开设了一个名为“战胜抑郁症”的新话题，希望能通过科普相关知识帮助抑郁症病人。

2020年夏天，“逝者如斯夫dead”迎来了第三位运营者——吴孜彧。

“死亡不是生命的终点，遗忘才是。”吴孜彧觉得“逝者如斯夫dead”正是为逝者的家属提供一个安放回忆的场所。