Goodbye, Tomb-Sweeping Day. What should I prepare? The Process and Taboos of Tomb-Sweeping Day's Sacrificing Ancestors, Grave-sweeping, and Worshiping the Spirit Bone Pagoda

In Li Yuhan, most people go back to their hometown to visit their graves in Tomb-Sweeping Day on April 5th of the lunar calendar. But do you know the origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day commemorating ancestors? The origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period in 636 BC. In order to commemorate the loyal minister Jietui, the anniversary of Jin Wengong's death has been passed down to this day, and people remember their ancestors and the dead on this day. Among the 24 solar terms of the lunar calendar, the spring is full and the fields are bright and clean, hence the name "Tomb-Sweeping Day". The common food in Tomb-Sweeping Day, such as moist cakes and cakes, is because people used to go home from sweeping graves and didn't have time to make a fire to cook, so they mixed the ingredients into cakes to fill their stomachs. However, with the changes of the times, the original meaning of traditional customs, the process of traditional worship in Tomb-Sweeping Day, and the significance of offering fruits that need to be prepared are mostly forgotten. So, let's learn what items and procedures need to be prepared for Tomb-Sweeping Day's worship, and what taboo rules are there for sweeping graves. A look at the worship process in Tomb-Sweeping Day: What is the order of traditional grave-sweeping worship in Linggu Pagoda? In Taiwan Province, Tomb-Sweeping Day has three common ways of worshipping and sweeping graves, including hanging paper, repairing tombs and visiting the Guling Pagoda. Hanging paper: also known as "pressing paper", rectangular yellow and white paper (or black, white, blue and yellow paper) is pressed on the grave with stones or bricks, which means that future generations have worshipped it. Grave sweeping: After removing weeds from ancestral graves, provide prepared sacrificial vessels, wine, fruits and vegetables, and clams. This is because traditional culture believes that the geomantic omen of ancestral graves is closely related to the fortune of future generations. Therefore, after cleaning up the environment, children and grandchildren will light lanterns in front of them and then let them take them home to wish them future development and prosperity. According to the explanation in the book "Seeking God in Adversity", the sequence of Tomb-Sweeping Day's worship is as follows: Worship the Earth God (Hou Di): worship with three cups of three beasts, red turtle shells, noodles, tea and wine. Sacrifice to ancestors: In front of ancestors' graves, another set of three animals, as well as offerings such as fruits, 12 dishes, red eggs, fragrant rice, noodles, red turtle shells, grass shells, wine, flowers, etc., are placed, and then incense candles are lit for sincere worship. Cleaning the ancestral graves: After filling 3 cups of wine and 3 cups of tea, start to clean the environment and remove the new grass from the graves. Burning gold paper: first remove the gold paper dedicated to the land Lord, and start burning after three worships; Burn the golden paper to worship the afterlife, then take the golden paper to worship the ancestors, and burn it after the same three worships. After burning the golden paper, sprinkle the sacrificial wine on the burning place of the golden paper. Li Cheng packed the offerings: the sacrificial eggs were broken and peeled off, and scattered on the graves of ancestors, symbolizing "shelling and rebirth". In addition, from the beginning, some red turtle nests and grass nests can be left for the cemetery managers or local children to eat, which also means "leaving a legacy". Worship of Guling Tower: With the improvement of environmental awareness, people gradually choose cremation (entering the tower), flower burial, sea burial and so on. In spirit and significance, it is different from the traditional way of sweeping graves in Tomb-Sweeping Day, because there is no doubt of overgrown weeds, so the process of sacrifice is relatively simple. Those who enter the tower, if they believe in traditional religion, should prepare two copies of the gold, one is to worship the Tibetan king bodhisattva, and the other is to worship their ancestors with silver paper. The order of worship is as follows: placing offerings: before placing offerings, say hello to the Ancestor Tower, and then place the offerings on the table of Guling Tower. Sacrifice Dibao Dibao: Burn incense (three incense sticks) to worship Dibao Bodhisattva or the patron saint of Naguta to express gratitude to the gods for guarding their ancestors and guiding their practice. Sacrifice to ancestors: burn incense (two incense sticks). When the incense burns to about one third, hold silver paper in your hand to worship your ancestors, and then burn incense. Li Cheng, pack your offerings. As for flower burial, tree burial and sea burial, there are no specific sacrificial ceremonies. In this way, most people will hold family memorial services around Tomb-Sweeping Day to commemorate the dead, or remember them according to religious beliefs, and some people will go to places with commemorative significance such as flowers, trees and the sea to worship and mourn. How to prepare Tomb-Sweeping Day's grave-sweeping sacrifice? These fruits and offerings symbolize the traditional customs of Geely. No matter whether Tomb-Sweeping Day visited the grave or went to visit the Guling Pagoda, the food placed was mostly cold. In fact, Tomb-Sweeping Day's grave-sweeping offerings and fruits have eyebrows. What offerings do you need to prepare? Here are eight kinds of people who don't step on mines: face turtles and peanuts: "turtles" are long-lived animals, and there is a saying in southern Fujian that "please sip potatoes, it will make you feel old", so both of these foods symbolize longevity. Dried bean curd: the homonym of "big official" in Minnan language means that future generations can be officials. Cuisine: It represents lewdness, among which Korean cuisine symbolizes that future generations are tall or beautiful, and they can become officials in the future. Shrimp and eggs: In Tomb-Sweeping Day, people usually peel off eggshells and throw them on the graves of their ancestors, and then eat eggs. This is because the "shell" symbolizes bad habits or things, and peeling off the shell only leaves a useful body, which means that future generations can get rid of the bad habits of the past and live a better life. Red turtle nest, grass nest: it means you don't have to worry about food and clothing. Hair cake, rice cake: pronounced "Gao" means step by step promotion. Leek: It means a long time. Pay attention to not fasting when worshipping. Carrot: It means good luck. Tomb-Sweeping Day, bye-bye! Don't touch the four taboos of sweeping graves: Tomb-Sweeping Day's sweeping graves is to show respect for his ancestors, but it is related to ghosts and gods. Traditionally, cemeteries and other places are considered cloudy, which makes many customs worshipped by Tomb-Sweeping Day even more taboo. What should Tomb-Sweeping Day pay attention to when sweeping graves? Taboos for grave-sweeping sacrifices in Tomb-Sweeping Day: These fruits and fragrant flowers are not suitable for bringing a whole string of fruits such as pineapple (representing Wangwang), grapes, bananas, lychees and longan (to avoid bringing a whole string of fruits home), and are not suitable as sacrifices. Peach blossom, plum blossom, pear blossom, winter jasmine and lily are better sacrificial flowers, and thorns such as roses should be avoided, because in the traditional concept, such plants are used to block evil spirits and worship ancestors may block good luck. Don't take pictures in the cemetery. In the traditional folk concept, Yin and Yang are incompatible. If you really want to take a photo with your ancestors, try not to let the ancestors of other families take photos and infringe on others. I'm afraid it will be bad luck. Try not to wear too bright clothes. In order to show respect for ancestors, try to choose clothes with light colors and low brightness, especially red and yellow, which are easy to attract others' attention. Pregnant women, seriously ill patients and children under 3 years old should try not to sweep graves. Most cemeteries are located in remote areas and are not cleaned at ordinary times. I'm afraid there are many bacteria in the environment. The immunity of young children, pregnant women and seriously ill patients is relatively low, and sudden arrival in those areas may cause physical burden. (Editor's recommendation: high fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes, beware of scrub typhus! This can be done during epidemic prevention. Due to the outbreak of novel coronavirus in the world this year, the Ministry of Interior suggested that you can take the form of "online ancestor worship" or "streaming grave sweeping". If people who have to go to the site to worship their ancestors in Tomb-Sweeping Day don't have to go on the same day, they can go ahead of time or postpone the time of grave-sweeping and worship, so as to avoid the risk of cross-infection caused by group gathering. (Editor's recommendation: Qingming ancestor worship 10 taboo! 7 kinds of fruits don't worship, 3 kinds of people don't sweep graves)