In China, there are 8 major festivals, including Spring Festival, Lantern Festival,
Dragon Boat Festival, Chinese Valentine's Day, Ghost Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival,
Double Ninth Festival and Pure Brightness Festival, also called 清明 or清明(节) [ qīng míng
jié ] by Chinese people. [qīng míng ] is a 3 day public holiday in China. Depending
on the Chinese Lunar calendar, [ Qīng míng ] usually is on the 4th or 5th day of April.
Every year on that day, millions of Chinese people would make a trip to a cemetery 墓园
[ mù yuán ], sweeping the tombs 扫墓 [ sǎo mù ] and giving offerings to the dead.
Now you know that [ Qīng míng ] is not a celebration but a day to remember and pay respect to the
dead, giving appreciation to the family members who have passed away.
You may wonder what Chinese people do to pay respect to the dead. But before we go further,
you should first understand why treating the dead with respect is so important in the Chinese culture.
This is all about 孝[ xiào ]. What is孝 [ xiào ] ? To make it easier for you
to understand, 孝 [ xiào ] is a type of love with responsibilities. In western culture,
people often say "I love you" to their parents and give them a kiss. Well... this
is not the case in Chinese culture. Our way to show love is different. I love my parents
so much but I never say "I love you" to them or even to my two grandparents who have
passed away. But I show my love through actions. Chinese people are taught to remember how
much their parents have helped them and the sacrifices they have made to raise them and
guide them. And guess what? We will never be able to pay them back. What we can do
is to take care of them when they get old and give them as much as we can afford. And
even when parents pass away, children are responsible for getting the dead a nice place
to have peace forever and then continue to supply them what they may need This is called 孝
[ xiào ], which is a tradition value children hold to their parents.
On清明(节) [ Qīng míng jié ] millions of loving children fight traffic on their
way to cemeteries, performing a series of ceremonies for the dead. Families and relatives
will join together at a cemetery and they carry lots of items for the activity such
as cooked food, flowers, incense and paper money ready to burn for the dead. Burning
incense and paper items are a traditional culture in China. Paper items can be basically
anything as long as it is in a paper form. Now family members can sweep the tombs, holding
burning incense and talk to the dead as long as they want. Does it sound like a lot of
work? Hmm..remember, to be a 孝顺的孩子 [ xiào shùn de hái zi] "a loving child"
is all that matters. Chinese culture is very important to me and
my family, so I value the opportunity to share it with you. Thanks for watching!