Title: grave sweeping
Pinyin: s?om?
The first grave sweeper: Jin Wengong.
The first grave sweeper in Tomb-Sweeping Day: meson push
Basic explanation
Sweep graves and pay homage to the dead.
detailed description
1. Clean the cemetery in advance. See "Mourning the Grave".
2. Sacrifice to sweep the grave.
"History of the Song Dynasty Tang Kezhuan": "The bachelor of Yankangtang knows Tanzhou, please go to Qiantang to sweep the grave, and then the official will be changed to Hangzhou." Shenqing replied to "Six Chapters of a Floating Life": "Mr. Tomb-Sweeping Day paid a spring sacrifice to sweep the grave, and the rest went with him." Bing Xin's "Send a Little Reader" 23: "Tomb-Sweeping Day's grave sweeping, although not burning paper money, can also cultivate children's respectful and silent respect for their ancestors."
[Edit this paragraph] Basic concepts
Sweeping graves on Qingming Festival is called "respecting thinking about time" for ancestors. Its customs have a long history. In the Ming Dynasty's "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of the Imperial Capital", it was written: "On the Qingming Festival in March, men and women went to the grave to pay their respects, and the gold ingot was hung on the back of the sedan chair, and the road was full of embarrassment. Worshipers, mourners, weeping, weeding, adding soil to graves, burning ingots several times, and buying graves with paper money. If you can't see the paper money, it will be a lonely grave. After crying, don't go back, go to the fragrant tree, choose the garden, and sit down and get drunk. " In fact, grave-sweeping existed before the Qin Dynasty, but not necessarily during the Qingming period, but after the Qin Dynasty. It was not until the Tang Dynasty that it became popular. Qing thomas lee said, "On New Year's Eve, the Cold Food Festival and the First Frost Festival, you should offer sacrifices to sweep the graves. During the period, I will serve my bed with vegetarian food, use wine and tools for cutting vegetation, seal trees in the middle of the week, and break Cao Jing, so it is called sweeping the grave. " And spread to this day.
Tomb-Sweeping Day's sweeping ceremony was supposed to be held in person, but because of the different economic conditions of each family, the way of sweeping was different. "Burning a bundle" is the main form of paying homage to ancestors. The so-called "baggage", also known as "parcel", refers to the postal parcel that Xiao sent from Shi Yang to the underworld. In the past, Nanzhi store sold the so-called "wrapped skin", that is, a big bag was pasted with white paper. There are two forms: one is a woodcut version with Sanskrit transliteration of "Death Mantra" printed around it, and a lotus memorial tablet printed in the middle with the name of the deceased who received the money, such as "the late boss of Zhang Fujun Afraid of Yunshan", which is both a parcel and a memorial tablet. The other is plain foreskin, which does not print any patterns. Just put a blue sign in the middle and write down the name of the deceased. Also used as a master card. There are many kinds of money in the bag.
First burn paper, nine k white paper, and smash four rows of round money, five for each row;
2. Ghost banknotes, which are copied after the world has foreign currency tickets, are written with the words "Paradise Bank", "Ghost Bank" and "Bank of Hell and Cao Yin", and have the pattern of the capital city, mostly with huge denominations, and the Buddhist "death curse" is printed on the back;
3. Fake foreign currency, with cardboard as the core and wrapped in silver foil, suppressing the same pattern as the prevailing silver dollar at that time;
Fourth, the "death curse" printed in red on yellow paper is round money, so it is also called "death money";
Five, with gold foil and silver foil stacked ingots, hammers, and some string into a string, with a colored paper ear at the bottom. In the old society, no matter rich or poor, there was a burning burden. On that day, a confession case was set up in the ancestral hall or the main room of the family house, with the luggage in the middle. In front of it, there are offerings such as jiaozi, cakes and fruits, burning incense and holding candles. After the whole family salutes according to their generations, they can be incinerated outside the door. When incinerating, draw a big circle and leave a gap in the direction of the cemetery. Burning three or five pieces of paper outside the circle is called "special delivery."
Some rich people want to take their families and their families to the grave to pay homage. At this time, it is necessary to repair the grave, or symbolically add soil to the grave and put some paper money on it to let others see and know that there are descendants in this grave. After the sacrifice, some people sat around to eat and drink; Others fly kites and even compete with each other for entertainment. Women and children will also fold some Yang Liuzhi nearby and put on steamed food with wicker. Others put wicker into reeds and put them on their heads, saying, "If you don't wear willow in Qingming Festival, you will become a yellow dog in the afterlife." This is a grave-sweeping and an outing. You can't go home until you are happy.
[Edit this paragraph] Tea willow
It is said that the custom of inserting willows is also to commemorate Shennong, the ancestor of farming, who taught the people to cultivate crops. In some places, people put willow branches under the eaves to forecast the weather. There is an old saying that "the willow branches are green and the rain is raining;" The saying that there is another village. During the period of Huang Chao, it was stipulated that "Qingming lasts for a period, and Liu Dai is the number". After the failure of the uprising, the custom of wearing willow was gradually eliminated, and only willow was popular. Willow has a strong vitality, as the saying goes: "If you plant flowers with your heart, you will plant willows without your heart. "Wicker lives when it is planted in the soil, and it lives where it is planted. When it is planted year after year, it becomes gloomy everywhere.
Tomb-Sweeping Day has beautiful spring breeze and trees. People go hiking, sweeping graves and going to graves on this day. Everyone should wear willow, and willow branches should be inserted at the door of every household. Where did this custom come from? There is a legend about Tomb-Sweeping Day related to Liu Yong, a great poet in the Song Dynasty. It is said that Liu Yong lives a dissolute life and often travels between Huajie Liuxiang. Geisha at that time loved their talents and were proud of being favored by Liu Yong. However, Liu Yong was not allowed to have a career because of his bad life. Although he passed the Jinshi, he died in poverty in Xiangyang. His funeral expenses were all raised by singers who admired him. Every year in Tomb-Sweeping Day, the singer will plant willow branches in front of his grave as a souvenir. It has become a custom to plant willow branches on Qingming Festival. In fact, this custom existed as early as the Tang Dynasty. People in the Tang Dynasty believed that wearing willow branches when offering sacrifices by the river on March 3 could get rid of the harm of poisonous insects. After the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the custom of inserting willows in Tomb-Sweeping Day was very popular. When people come back from an outing, they stay at home to avoid insects. Whether recorded in folklore or historical records, planting willows in Tomb-Sweeping Day is always related to avoiding diseases and epidemics. During the Spring Festival, the climate gets warmer, and all kinds of germs begin to multiply in large numbers. People can only hope to shake willows and branches in the case of poor medical conditions.
There is another saying in Tomb-Sweeping Day: It turns out that China people regard Tomb-Sweeping Day, July 30th and the first day of October as the three major ghost festivals, which are the time for ghosts to haunt and ask for help. In order to prevent the harassment and persecution of ghosts, people put willows and put them on. Willow has the function of ward off evil spirits in people's minds. Influenced by Buddhism, people think that willows can exorcise ghosts and call them "ghost trees". Guanyin dipped willow branches in water to help all beings. Jia Sixie of the Northern Wei Dynasty said in the Book of Qi Yao Min: "Take a willow branch and put it on the house, and a hundred ghosts will not enter the house." Tomb-Sweeping Day is a ghost festival. When wicker sprouted, people naturally inserted willows to ward off evil spirits. The Han people have the custom of "folding willows to bid farewell": Baqiao is in Chang 'an East, crossing the water is the bridge, and the Han people send guests to this bridge and fold willows to bid farewell. Li Bai has a saying: "Willow falls every year, Lingling hurts." In ancient times, on both sides of Chang 'an Baqiao, the embankment was ten miles long, one step at a time. Many people who walk from Chang 'an East come here to bid farewell to their loved ones and fold willow branches to bid farewell to their loved ones, because "willow" is homophonic with "stay" to show the meaning of retaining. This custom originated from the book of songs, Xiaoya Cai Wei, which said, "I was away yesterday, Liu Yiyi." Send a willow tree as a parting gift to express feelings that are inseparable and reluctant to part. Willow is a symbol of spring. Willow swaying in spring always gives people a feeling of prosperity. "Farewell to the Willows" contains the wish that "spring is always there". The ancients sawed off the willows and sent them to each other, which also meant that their relatives, such as willow branches, left their hometown. I hope that when they arrive in a new place, they can take root and sprout quickly, as if willow branches can grow everywhere. It's a good wish for friends. There are also many references to folding willows to give people away in ancient poems. Quan Deyu's poem in Tang Dynasty: "Give me new knowledge", Song Dynasty's poem: "There are no green willows on the other side of the road, don't worry", and Ming Dynasty's poem: "Give someone away when you are old, and the willows on the edge of the city will be folded." Chen Weisong's Ci in Qing Dynasty: "How many border crossings are left? Want a discount. " People will not only feel sad when they see willow trees, but also touch their mood when they hear the song "Breaking Willow". Li Bai's "Smelling the flute in Los Angeles on a Spring Night": "Everyone can't stand the homesickness." In fact, Liu can have many symbolic meanings. The ancients endowed Liu with various feelings, so it is reasonable to borrow Liu to send feelings.
[Edit this paragraph] The custom of ancient cold food festival
The customs of the Cold Food Festival include going to the grave, sightseeing, cockfighting, swinging, playing with carpets, pulling hooks (tug of war) and so on. The custom of going to the grave is very old. Where there is a grave, there must be a tomb sacrifice. Later, due to the integration with the custom of evoking souls in March, it was gradually decided to sacrifice on cold food. The book of the Tang Dynasty says: "In the twentieth year of Kaiyuan, cold food went to the tomb, and the rites were silent. According to modern legend, it is advisable to go to the tomb to worship the ceremony. " Song Yu's "Chicken Ribs" volume: "Cold food is buried, and there is no fragrance. Paper money hangs on the tree. People who go to the countryside climb mountains to watch sacrifices. Breaking in the air is called breaking money. However, due to the fate of Shi Jing, we set up wine (seal, rice) and took our family for a spring outing. "
[Edit this paragraph] The custom of old Beijing going to Tomb-Sweeping Day.
There is also a custom in old Beijing, Tomb-Sweeping Day, that is, to burn incense at the Chenghuang Temple, bow down and pray for a sign, and make a wish and ask for a blessing. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties and the Republic of China, there were seven or eight Chenghuang temples in old Beijing, and incense was the most prosperous at that time. The "Lord Huang Cheng" enshrined in the Town God Temple is the most popular god besides the Kitchen God and the God of Wealth. In fact, this "grandpa" is the minister of a city or a county. Every year, when the Ghost Festival is held in Tomb-Sweeping Day, people pray for blessings and wishes, pray for drought and flood (sunny when it rains), go out safely, recover when they are sick, and pray for the dead. At that time, the temple fair was very lively inside and outside, and there were stages and performances in the temple. According to the memories of the old people at home, in the early years of the Republic of China, there was also a trip to the city. People use eight sedan chairs to carry the "city master" made of rattan around the city, and all kinds of incense will accompany them. After the "Lord of the City", they performed yangko, stilts and five tiger sticks. While walking and performing, if there is a miscellaneous chant with the passing market visitors: "The temple is also divided into inner and outer cities, and the spring is expected to be bright, which is also early autumn and early winter. Men and women burn incense and ask about life and death. " That is the custom in Tomb-Sweeping Day.
[Edit this paragraph] The origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day's grave sweeping.
In China, people pay attention to the pursuit of the future with caution, and numerous sacrificial activities have appeared to adapt to this concept. With the passage of history, most of these activities have declined. Only the grave-sweeping activity in Tomb-Sweeping Day has survived to this day, so it is regarded as one of the oldest folk customs by experts.
Generally speaking, the custom of sweeping graves in Tomb-Sweeping Day has inherited the tradition of Cold Food Festival. "Before the Tang Dynasty, sweeping graves was always at the Cold Food Festival. Confusing Tomb-Sweeping Day with the Cold Food Festival began in the Tang Dynasty. It began in the Tang Dynasty to confuse cold food with tomb sweeping in Qingming "(China Festival and its Origin by Chen and Lu Lianrong, Shanghai Science and Technology Education Press, 1989).
So when did the custom of cold food sweeping graves begin? This is another controversial issue since the Song Dynasty.
Ouyang Xiu, a poet in the Song Dynasty, said: "Rites and music were bad in the Five Dynasties, and paper money was burned because of cold food and wild sacrifices. "In other words, the custom of cold food sweeping graves began in the Five Dynasties, which is the result of the abolition of etiquette.
Later, it was pointed out that the custom of sweeping graves with cold food had been popular at least in the middle Tang Dynasty. According to the imperial edict of the seventh year of Zongyuan (8 12), "Those who often attend official cold food visits tombs, those who listen to festivals in Guinea will return, and other state capitals will stop playing." Later, someone noticed the record in the book "Old Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty" that "cold food goes to the grave, and it should be compiled into five rituals, which will always be the same wind", and concluded that cold food began to sweep the grave in Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty. For example, "A Record of Huguang" said: "The tomb sacrifice, scholars do not make temple sacrifices, and it is appropriate to go to the tomb, which began in the Tang Dynasty." This conclusion has a great influence, and many works introducing tomb sweeping in Qingming Festival have been used.
Someone found out the original text of the imperial edict "It's appropriate to go to the grave" in the 20th year of Tang Xuanzong (732) from The Sacrifice of Cold Food in Volume 23 of Tang Yao Hui: "Cold food goes to the grave, and the ceremony is unwritten, which has been handed down from modern times and soaked into custom. Scholars don't like temples, so why show filial piety? " It's wise to go to the cemetery ... and it's still a ritual, always a routine. "It can be seen that this imperial edict only recognizes the popular custom of cold food going to the grave in the form of a decree, rather than the origin of the custom.
There are two stories about the origin of cold food sweeping graves in folklore. It is said that Zhuge Liang ruled Shu in the Three Kingdoms and won the hearts of the people. However, after his death, the court did not build a temple for him, and the people worshipped on the road in the field during the cold food. Later, the imperial court introspected and mishandled it, and formally attached a sacrifice to Zhuge Liang's ancestral hall (Liu Bei). However, the custom of cold food and wild sacrifice has been formed and evolved into a sacrifice to sweep the graves of ancestors. On the other hand, it is said that the custom of sweeping graves in Cold Food Festival and Cold Food Festival was formed at the same time in the Spring and Autumn Period, and both were promoted by commemorating hermits.
Some people think that cold food sweeping graves originated from the custom of ancient ancestors offering sacrifices to Gao Qi at the vernal equinox. Gao Zhi is the tallest mother. In the primitive society where people only recognize their mothers but not their fathers, the high mother is their ancestors. Sacrifice to Gao Qi is to worship ancestors. The first Cold Food Festival was held in late February, which coincided with the time to worship Shu Gao in ancient times. Therefore, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty established the Cold Food Festival as a festival to worship ancestors. Later, the Cold Food Festival was reduced to the last three or two days, or it was directly combined with Tomb-Sweeping Day, so the cold food festival grave sweeping became Qingming grave sweeping.
Some people even say that "the bottom of the pot draws salary": not only did the cold food grave-sweeping begin in Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty, but even the Qingming grave-sweeping was not transformed from the custom of the Cold Food Festival. According to the record in the 21st volume of Tang Yao Hui, the Tomb Gift, in the second year of Yonghui (65 1), the relevant departments indicated to Xian Di that when the late emperor (that is, Emperor Taizong) was alive, he would pay tribute to the tomb (that is, the tomb) in "New Moon, Hope, Winter, Summer, La, Qingming and Society (Day)". The emperor "followed it". It can be seen that the tomb sacrifice system of Li Tang Royal Tomb-Sweeping Day has been established since the reign of Emperor Taizong. Looking back, we can find that this ritual system was actually formed in the Han Dynasty. Zhang Huai, Emperor Taizong, quoted Ying Shao's Han Guan Yi when he annotated the Book of the Later Han Dynasty: "Qin Shihuang began to sleep at the tomb, so the Han Dynasty did not change, and all tombs were based on gloom, hope, twenty-four, three volts, society, wax and four seasons." The so-called "twenty-four qi" should include Qingming. As early as the Han Dynasty, it was recorded in Huai Nan Zi, Shu Wei Yi Tong Guayan and Xiao Jing Shen Fu Qi, and the twenty-four qi is completely consistent with the present twenty-four qi.
So, what traditions did Tomb-Sweeping Day follow in the Han Dynasty? How did the "Twenty-four Qi" tomb sacrifice in the early Tang Dynasty become "new moon, hope, winter, summer, wax, Qingming and social food"? Are the tomb sweeping sacrifices of the royal family in the Tang Dynasty and the cold food that has always been popular among the people going to the grave side by side, or are they unified from the same source? Without distinguishing these problems one by one, it seems that it is impossible to completely uncover the mystery of the origin of tomb sweeping in Qingming. [ 1]