Way of the Undead Fist

One of the more interesting similarities between Eastern and Western undead legends is the idea that the bodies of the undead have a connection to the soil of their homeland.  Often when working on the Railroad, when Chinese Laborers died they would request their bones were shipped back to China to be buried.

The legends of the Jiangshi were also related as Corpse runners were often employed to take bodies of laborers back to their homes.  They traveled at night so the body would not decay in the sun.  They would also carry a bell in front of them as it was considered unlucky to encounter them on the road.  The bell was a warning that there were dead traveling on the road.  As time passed the bell became a symbol of ways to repel Jiangshi.

Even european vampire legends such as Bram Stoker’s Dracula also had the belief that vampires had to sleep in boxes of soil from their homeland during the day.

For more on the Hopping Vampire or Jiangshi try here. http://www.historyanswers.co.uk/people-politics/chinese-hopping-vampires-the-gruesome-origin-of-the-jiangshi-legend/