Tomb Sweeping Day(Qingming Festival): How It’s Observe

Tomb Sweeping Day(Qingming Festival is one of the most important traditional festivals in China. It is not only a festival for people to pay tribute to their ancestors and remember their ancestors, but also a bond for the Chinese people to recognize their ancestors and return to their ancestors, and a spring ritual for hiking and trekking, getting close to nature and urging for new life.

Origins (起源, Qǐyuán）

It is said that the Qingming Festival was originally held to commemorate Jie Zitui, a loyal man who lived during the Spring and Autumn Period. Jie cut a piece of meat from his own leg in order to save his hungry lord who was forced to flee from his own country.

Later, when the lord regained his position, he forgot about Jie Zitui’s sacrifice. However, after being reminded, he felt ashamed and decided to reward the loyal man, but Jie had hidden in a mountain with his mother. In order to find Jie, the lord ordered that the mountain be set on fire.

Unfortunately, Jie was found dead with his mother. In order to commemorate the day of his death, the lord declared the date to be Hanshi (Cold Food) Festival — the day that only cold food can be eaten.

A year later, when the lord went to the mountain to commemorate Jie’s death, he found the burned willows had revived, so he gave instructions that the day after Hanshi Festival was to be Qingming Festival. Eventually, the two festivals were combined into one.

Customs (习俗, Xísú)

There are many customs for Qingming Festival, and there are differences in the content or details of the customs in different parts of China due to different regional cultures. Although the customs vary from place to place, sweeping the tomb to pay respect to the ancestors and treading on the greenery are the common basic ritual themes.

Inserting willows (插柳, Chā liǔ)

At Qingming Festival, Chinese folklore has the custom of inserting willows.

It is said that the willow custom is to commemorate the ancestor of agriculture, Shennong, who “taught the people harvest”. In some places, people put willow branches under the eaves to forecast the weather, and there is an old proverb that says “when the willow is green, it rains; when the willow is dry, it is sunny”. The willow has a strong vitality, as the saying goes, “If you have the intention to plant a flower, the willow will become a shade.” Willow inserted into the soil will live, inserted into where, live to where, year after year willow, everywhere into shade.

Another saying is that this custom is to commemorate Jiezitui. The willow tree was burned under the willow tree for the purpose of keeping his promise, which made the Duke of Jin and his courtiers and people feel sad. The next year, the Duke of Jin led his ministers to climb up the mountain to pay homage to Jiezitui and found that the old willow tree, which had been burned, had come back to life. The Duke of Jin gave the old willow tree the name of “Qingming Willow” and broke off a few willow sticks to wear on his head as a token of remembrance.

Spring Outing (踏青, Tàqīng)

Not only is it a day for commemorating the dead, but it is also a time for people to enjoy themselves.

As trees turn green, flowers blossom, and the sun shines brightly, everything returns to life. It is a fine time to appreciate the beauty of nature. This custom can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770 – 476BC) and the Warring States Period (475 – 221BC).

Flying Kites (放风筝, Fàng fēngzhēng)

Flying kites is also closely associated with the Qingming Festival.
Spring outings not only add joy to life but also promote a healthy mind and body.

Swinging (荡秋千, Dàng qiūqiān)

During the Ming Dynasty, swinging was a desig-nated recreation on Tomb Sweeping Festival. According to the Annals of the Ming Court, this day was also called Swing Festival, when swings were suspended in the Hall of the Forbidden City and in all the residential complexes where palace ladies resided. Ladies of the imperial household wore colorful silks especially made for the occasion, and amused themselves on swings.

Qingming traditional food (清明食俗, Qīngmíng shí sú)

Qingtuan (青团, Qīng tuán)

The food commonly associated with the tomb-sweeping day, is the Qingtuan (青团, Qīng tuán), a glutinous rice dumpling (which is very similar to Japanese mochi) dyed green with mugwort juice or wormwood grass. Though customarily prepared with fillings such as red bean paste or black sesame paste, qingtuan has lately a variety of flavors.
Eating Qingtuan was a tradition in the south and east China. In recent years, the recipe is more well-known both domestically and internationally.

San zi (馓子, Sǎn zi)

In both Northern and Southern China, it is a tradition to eat san zi, or fried dough twist, on Tomb Sweeping Day. The differences between san zi made by Northern and Southern people lie in sizes and materials. The former one is larger, often made from wheat and the latter is finer and made from rice.

Thin pancake (薄饼, Báobǐng)

People in Xiamen in Fujian province often have thin pancakes on Tomb Sweeping Day. Dried seaweed, omelette, veggies and chili sauce are added in the pancakes to enhance the flavor.

Cudweed herb rolls (清明果, Qīngmíng guǒ)

The best time to pick fresh cudweed herb is around Tomb Sweeping Day. The herb is often added in veggie rolls or dumplings and consumed on the day. In South China, people add the wild plant also in steamed buns.

Spiral Shell (清明螺, Qīngmíng luó)

The Qingming Festival is the right time for eating spiral shell. Spiral shell is abundant in this season.

Poetry (诗歌, Shīgē)