• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Chandler's Ford Today

  • Home
  • About
    • About Chandler’s Ford
    • Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research
  • Blog
    • Blogging Tips
  • Event
    • Upcoming Events
  • Community
    • Groups
    • Churches
    • Schools
    • GP Surgeries
    • Leisure
    • Library
    • Charities
      • Eastleigh Basics Bank
      • Cat & Kitten Rescue in Chandler’s Ford
    • Fair Trade
      • Traidcraft stalls in Chandler’s Ford
    • Chandler’s Ford Parish Council
  • Contact
    • Subscribe
  • Site Policies
  • Site Archive
    • Site Archive 2018
    • Site Archive 2017
    • Site Archive 2016
    • Site Archive 2015
You are here: Home / Community / Tomb Sweeping Day

Tomb Sweeping Day

April 5, 2014 By Janet Williams 3 Comments

I have almost forgotten today is the Tomb Sweeping Day to the Chinese people.

I was reminded of the festival today when I read that the Chinese families of Chinese passengers aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are still hopeful.

Tomb Sweeping Day is also known as the Qing Ming Festival 清明节, literally Clear Bright Festival (Qīng Míng Jié – pronunciation of ‘q’ is close to ‘ch’. Qīng 清 - is also the last imperial dynasty of China).

Today the Chinese people clean and sweep the graves of their loved ones, worship and honour their ancestors. People also gather to mourn war victims and heroic martyrs. The Chinese offer sacrifices to the deceased, burn paper money or replicas of luxury items.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

It is a national holiday (extended to next Monday) in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.

In this post, I’m sharing with you images from Yellow, a photographer in Taiwan. He wrote that when he was a child, he did not appreciate the tomb sweeping rituals. However as he grows older, he feels that it is a precious day for family reunion with many generations and to show gratitude to his ancestors.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

Yellow took the pictures in March 2012 in Taichung City of Taiwan.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

Tomb Sweeping Day is celebrated on the fifth solar term of the Chinese calendar, on the 104th day after the winter solstice. It usually occurs around April 5 of the Gregorian calendar.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

From now, temperature will rise, and rainfall increases. Gardeners start spring plowing and sowing.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

The Qing Ming festival is a festival of commemoration. The day is juxtaposed with sadness and joy. Traditionally, Qing Ming is the best time for spring outing.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

Swinging and kite flying are extremely popular on this particular day. In the past, once the kites were high in the sky, people would cut off the string, so that the kites would take away misfortune and illness.

Tomb Sweeping Day - image by Yellow on Flickr. Taichung City, Taiwan, 2012.
Tomb Sweeping Day – image by Yellow on Flickr.

MH370 is still missing. To the families of the Chinese passengers on board MH370, the Tomb Sweeping Day is painful. Without the truth, they could not even start mourning.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google
  • Email

Related posts:

Jade rabbit and Chang'eMid-Autumn Moon, Love, And Myths Meet Hui-Min From Singapore Celebrating Chinese New Year in Singapore with Prosperity Toss.From The Fall Of Singapore To Prosperity Sri Lankan children commonwealth gamesCommonwealth Games In Kandy Ancient Vedda Tribe Becoming Extinct
Tags: bereavement, Chinese, culture, education, family, gardening, history, tradition, weather

About Janet Williams

I created Chandler's Ford Today. I use this website to share our passions and inspiring stories, to build a connected community. We inform, educate and enlighten. We share resources.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Hazel Bateman says

    April 6, 2014 at 8:44 am

    I love the idea of cutting the kite strings to get rid of misfortune! I am enjoying learning more of Chinese culture from your posts.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. China in Bath - Chandler's Ford Today says:
    April 7, 2014 at 8:01 am

    […] of East Asian ceramics, picture art, decorative items dating back to BC, there is an exhibition of Chinese people in […]

    Reply
  2. Father's Day And Chinese War Of Resistance - Chandler's Ford Today says:
    June 15, 2014 at 4:05 pm

    […] on the 3rd Sunday of June in the mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, as in the USA and Britain, in Taiwan, Father’s Day on the 8th of August can be traced back to the end of the Second World War in […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Search

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Chandler's Ford Today blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Archives

Top Posts & Pages

999, 111, 101, 112? Emergency Numbers You Must Know
101 Things to Put into Room 101
Reading, Rhythms, and Resolutions in Fiction
101 Things to Put into Room 101 - Part 7 - The Final Leg
Home
First Aider and First Responder
A Poem by John Roedel - "In the face of war, I’m so small - yet, love is so big."
Blog
Do You Remember The Hutments?
Eastleigh Remembers - Truly Memorable

Categories

Tags

arts and crafts books Chandler's Ford Chandler's Ford Today Chandler’s Ford community charity Christianity Christmas church community creative writing culture Eastleigh Eastleigh Borough Council education entertainment event family fundraising gardening gardening tips good neighbours Hiltingbury Hiltingbury Road history hobby how-to interview Joan Adamson Joan Adelaide Goater local businesses local interest memory Methodist Church music nature news reading review social storytelling theatre travel Winchester Road writing

Recent Comments

  • Allison Symes on Reading, Rhythms, and Resolutions in Fiction
  • Mike Sedgwick on Reading, Rhythms, and Resolutions in Fiction
  • Martin Harman on Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal (Part 172)
  • Allison Symes on Paragraphs and Punctuation in Fiction
  • Mike Sedgwick on Paragraphs and Punctuation in Fiction
  • Robbie Sprague on Mrs Doncaster

Regular Writers and Contributors

Janet Williams Allison Symes Mike Sedgwick Rick Goater Doug Clews chippy minton Martin Napier Roger White Andy Vining Gopi Chandroth Nicola Slade Wellie Roger Clark Ray Fishman Hazel Bateman SO53 News

Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Forty Years in Chandler’s Ford – a Journal by Joan Adelaide Goater

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

Growing up in Chandler’s Ford: 1950s – 1960s by Martin Napier

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

My Memories of the War Years in Chandler’s Ford 1939 – 1945 by Doug Clews

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

Chandler’s Ford War Memorial Research by Margaret Doores

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

History of Hiltonbury Farmhouse by Andy Vining

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

My Family History in Chandler’s Ford and Hursley by Roger White

Do You Remember The Hutments? By Nick John

Do You Remember The Hutments? By Nick John

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

Memory of Peter Green by Wendy Green

History of Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) Hursley Park by Dave Key

History of Vickers Armstrongs (Supermarine) Hursley Park by Dave Key

Reviews of local performances and places

Reviews of local performances and places

Copyright © 2022 Chandler's Ford Today. WordPress. Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.