The custom of Tomb-Sweeping Day

"Pear blossoms are clear, and wanderers are out of the spring city." Peach blossoms, willow green, long grass in Fei Ying, light wind and heavy rain give people a fresh and clear feeling everywhere, hence the name "Qingming". The breeze blows the green leaves, flowers scramble to hang on the treetops, and the drizzle soaks the earth, drawing a poetic and fresh ink painting. Let me introduce the customs of Tomb-Sweeping Day to you.

1. The custom of outing has a long history in our country. Because in ancient Tomb-Sweeping Day, most people went to the suburbs to sweep graves, and after relatives and friends gathered together to mourn their deceased ancestors, they often chose to have a good time in this garden with beautiful spring and long grass, and the custom of going for an outing in Tomb-Sweeping Day was slowly passed down. Spring outing is an important custom of Shangsi Festival.

Since Shangsi Festival was incorporated into Tomb-Sweeping Day, the custom of outing has been preserved. During the Qingming Festival, spring returns to the earth and birds sing clearly, which is a good time to go for an outing. Moreover, in the embrace of nature, people's mood can be relaxed, and the inner sadness of pedestrians can also be alleviated.

2. It's another interesting habit in Tomb-Sweeping Day to insert willows, so in the past, Tomb-Sweeping Day was also called the festival of inserting willows. There are many forms of willow insertion and willow penetration. The most common thing is to insert wicker on the door. Women wear willows as seasonal decorations, while children wear hats made of wicker. Because there are not many willows in the city, people often break a few wickers when they come back from an outing, or insert or wear them. "Scenery of the Imperial Capital" describes the custom of inserting willows for tourists who go hiking during the Qingming Festival.

There is another saying in Tomb-Sweeping Day: It turns out that China people regard Tomb-Sweeping Day, July 30th and the first day of October as the three major ghost festivals, which are the time for ghosts to haunt and ask for help. In order to prevent the harassment and persecution of ghosts, people put willows and put them on. Willow has the function of ward off evil spirits in people's minds. Influenced by Buddhism, people think that wicker can exorcise ghosts, which is called "fear of ghost wood". Guanyin sells water with wicker to help all beings. Jia Si of the Northern Wei Dynasty was very angry with Yao Minshu of Qi State, and said, "Put a willow branch on the house, and a hundred ghosts will not enter." Tomb-Sweeping Day is a ghost festival. When the season of wicker germination comes, people naturally insert willows and wear willows to avoid evil spirits.

Tug-of-war originated in the late Spring and Autumn Period and was first popular in the army. At that time, it was called "tug-of-war" and "strong hook", which later spread to the people and began to be called "tug-of-war" in the Tang Dynasty. Tug-of-war means that both sides are equal in number. Pull a thick rope and pull the other side out of the river boundary, even if you win. During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, a large tug-of-war competition was held in Tomb-Sweeping Day, which gradually evolved into a folk custom in Tomb-Sweeping Day.

4. "Flying a kite" has such an artistic conception in the poems of the Qing Dynasty poet Gao Ding. "The grass grows in February, and the willow on the embankment is drunk with spring smoke. The children came back from school early and were busy flying kites in the east wind. " Flying kites is also one of people's favorite activities in Tomb-Sweeping Day. Kites were called "paper kites" in ancient times. The ancients thought that the Qingming wind was very suitable for flying kites. They think flying kites can release their bad breath. Therefore, when flying kites in Tomb-Sweeping Day, many people will write all the disasters they know on paper kites. When the kite flies high, they cut the kite string and let the kite float away with the wind, symbolizing that their illness and dirty air have been taken away by the kite.

The game of cockfighting prevailed in Qingming in ancient times. Cockfighting began in Qingming and lasted until the summer solstice. The earliest record of cockfighting in China can be found in Zuo Zhuan. In the Tang dynasty, cockfighting became a common practice, not only among the people, but even the emperor participated in cockfighting. Tang Xuanzong liked cockfighting, so he often held grand cockfighting competitions in Chang 'an. Especially in Tomb-Sweeping Day every year, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty had to gather people for cockfighting to show that the world was at peace.

These are five traditional customs in Tomb-Sweeping Day that I know. What else do you know, my friend? Say it in the comments section.