What is the history of Tomb-Sweeping Day?

Tomb-Sweeping Day is first and foremost a solar term. To talk about the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day, we should talk about how the 24 solar terms came about. Twenty-four solar terms originated in the Yellow River Basin. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, four solar terms were set, namely, mid-spring, mid-summer, mid-autumn and mid-winter. After continuous improvement and perfection, by the Qin and Han Dynasties, the 24 solar terms had been completely established. In BC 104, the taichu calendar written by Deng Ping officially set 24 solar terms in the calendar, and defined the astronomical position of the 24 solar terms.

Therefore, the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty, with a history of more than 2,500 years. Tomb-Sweeping Day was named after the Han Dynasty. At that time, the first15th day after the vernal equinox was regarded as Tomb-Sweeping Day, and future generations became a special festival. In the Jin Dynasty, the third day of the third lunar month was designated as Tomb-Sweeping Day. Because March is late spring, the weather is fine and the spring is bright, men, women and children are taking advantage of Tomb-Sweeping Day to enjoy the moon parade, which is called an outing.

Tomb-Sweeping Day is first and foremost a solar term. To talk about the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day, we should talk about how the 24 solar terms came about. Twenty-four solar terms originated in the Yellow River Basin. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period, four solar terms were set, namely, mid-spring, mid-summer, mid-autumn and mid-winter. After continuous improvement and perfection, by the Qin and Han Dynasties, the 24 solar terms had been completely established. In BC 104, the taichu calendar written by Deng Ping officially set 24 solar terms in the calendar, and defined the astronomical position of the 24 solar terms.

Therefore, the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty, with a history of more than 2,500 years. Tomb-Sweeping Day was named after the Han Dynasty. At that time, the first15th day after the vernal equinox was regarded as Tomb-Sweeping Day, and future generations became a special festival. In the Jin Dynasty, the third day of the third lunar month was designated as Tomb-Sweeping Day. Because March is late spring, the weather is fine and the spring is bright, men, women and children are taking advantage of Tomb-Sweeping Day to enjoy the moon parade, which is called an outing.

The Origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day and Its Relationship with Cold Food Festival

In ancient times, there was a cold food festival the day before in Tomb-Sweeping Day. According to legend, it was pushed by the sage meson of Jin State in the Spring and Autumn Period. On the day of cold food, no fireworks were moved, only cold food was eaten. Later, as the days of Qingming and cold food approached, cold food was the day when people banned fire to sweep graves. Gradually, cold food and Qingming became one, and cold food became another name of Qingming and became a custom of Qingming. On Qingming Day, there are no fireworks, only cold food.

Therefore, the emergence of Tomb-Sweeping Day borrowed the Cold Food Festival, which was only before Tomb-Sweeping Day, so it was naturally borrowed by the latter. The cultural basis of this kind of borrowing is people's habitual psychology of the festival, which is passed down from generation to generation and accumulated over time.

The Origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day: Why did Tomb-Sweeping Day visit the grave?

Tomb-Sweeping Day became a national grave-sweeping festival after the founding of the Republic of China. After the victory of the Northern Expedition, national reunification and Nanjing as its capital, the government designated Tomb-Sweeping Day as a national grave-sweeping festival every year to commemorate the achievements of the national ancestor Huangdi and express its admiration.

Why is grave-sweeping scheduled for Tomb-Sweeping Day this day? Because Qingming is the season of late spring and early summer, the climate is clear and the spring is full, and the earth is full of vitality; When Vientiane is renewed, people will naturally think of their ancestors and welcome them out of the winter break by offering sacrifices to enjoy the beautiful scenery of spring back to the earth together. This behavior is to show their nostalgia and reverence for their ancestors.

The Origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day When did Tomb-Sweeping Day become a legal holiday?

Because Tomb-Sweeping Day is a traditional festival in our country, and it is also an important festival to worship ancestors and sweep graves, and it is inconvenient for many office workers to go back to their hometown to worship and sweep, the state has designated Tomb-Sweeping Day as a national legal holiday, and Tomb-Sweeping Day has adjusted the weekend holiday for three days. The Measures for Holidays in Tomb-Sweeping Day was adopted at the the State Council Executive Meeting in 2007 and came into effect on June 65438+1October 65438+1October 2008.