The moral of Qingming egg

The original symbolic meaning of eggs is "spring-the beginning of a new life", and Tomb-Sweeping Day's eating eggs symbolizes satiety.

Tomb-Sweeping Day eggs can be roughly divided into two types, one is "painting eggs", which are actually dyed with various colors on the eggshells, similar to our "red eggs" today, but with different colors; The other is "egg carving", in which paintings are carved on eggshells. Paint the boiled eggs with bright colors, which are called "eggs". Children eating or playing "touching eggs" means good luck all the year round.

Tomb-Sweeping Day is one of the important "eight festivals a year" in China. Although the custom of forbidding fire and cold food in Tomb-Sweeping Day only became a national folk custom in the Song Dynasty, the custom of sweeping graves to worship ancestors in Tomb-Sweeping Day has a long history. In addition to visiting graves, the custom of Tomb-Sweeping Day has absorbed a series of folk sports activities in its historical development, such as swinging, cuju, polo and willow planting.

The legend of the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day

According to legend, Zhong Er, the son of the State of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, fled his hometown to escape the scourge. Zhong Er fainted from hunger. In order to save Zhong Er, Jiezitui cut a piece of meat from his leg, cooked it with fire and gave it to Zhong Er.

Nineteen years later, Zhong Er returned to China and became the monarch, that is, Jin Wengong, one of the famous five tyrants in the Spring and Autumn Period. After Jin Wengong came to power, in addition to meson push, he offered many rewards to courtiers who shared his joys and sorrows. Someone defended meson in front of Jin Wengong.

Jin Wengong suddenly remembered the past and felt guilty. He immediately sent someone to ask meson to take the imperial court to be rewarded as an official. Jiezitui didn't want to see him, and had already been hiding in Mianshan behind his mother's back.

So, someone had an idea, saying, it is better to let Yamakaji go, set fire on three sides, leave one side, burn it and the meson will come out. Jin Wengong ordered the promotion of Yamakaji. Unexpectedly, the fire burned for three days and nights. After the fire was put out, the meson was not pushed out after all. Looking up the mountain, the mother and son were holding a charred willow tree and were dead.

Jin Wengong looked at meson's body, cried for a while, and then buried the body. The following year, Jin Wengong led his ministers to go hiking in plain clothes to show their respect and condolences. Walking to the grave, I saw the dead old willow tree resurrected, with thousands of green branches dancing in the wind. After the sacrifice, Jin Wengong named the revived old willow "Qingming Willow" and named it Tomb-Sweeping Day.