tray for an absent person
A traditional Japanese custom: a meal tray set out for a family member who is absent, often due to travel, illness, or death, as a symbolic gesture of care or remembrance.
Grandmother prepared a tray for her absent grandchild who was far away.
Compound of 陰 (kage, 'shadow; hidden') and 膳 (zen, 'tray; meal'), literally 'shadow tray'. The exact historical origin is uncertain, but it is a well-documented folk custom.