Qingming Festival

Qingming Festival is coming up. As I am told, it usually falls on April 5th – 104 days after winter solstice. However, the association that we belong to will be celebrating it on the April 18th.

I always find it interesting how many Chinese holidays there are in the year. Most of them I have never heard of, but this one (Qingming) is of particular importance to me. The purpose of the festival is to honor your ancestors – “Grave Sweeping Day,” it is sometimes called. As I have read on Wikipedia, Qingming rites are usually celebrated amongst the farmers and have very traditional rituals devoted to the ancestors.

While I was growing up, I always thought of these festivals as “traditional” rather than “religious.” However, based on the events of the past couple of years, I’m starting to wonder if these festivals are rooted in something that is more spiritual and religious rather than just tradition. The festival normally consists of burning food preparation, burning incense, and paper money.

As far as festivals are concerned, it is a great opportunity for me to spend time with the family (which I hold of high importance and value). It’s nice to be all together again.

[tags]qingming festival, religious, grave sweeping day, Chinese holidays, honer ancestors[/tags]