The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of the living. Some groups venerate their direct, familial ancestors. Certain religious groups, in particular the Eastern Orthodox Churches, Catholic Church and Anglican Church venerate saints as intercessors with God; the latter also believes in prayer for departed souls in Purgatory. Other religious groups, however, consider veneration of the dead to be idolatry and a sin.
The Double Ninth Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday observed on the ninth day of the ninth month in the Chinese calendar. According to Wu Jun, it dates back to the Eastern Han dynasty.
The Ghost Festival or Hungry Ghost Festival, also known as the Zhongyuan Festival in Taoism and the Yulanpen Festival in Buddhism, is a traditional festival held in certain East and Southeast Asian countries. According to the Chinese calendar, the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh month.
Joss paper, also known as incense papers, are papercrafts or sheets of paper made into burnt offerings common in Chinese ancestral worship. Worship of deities in Chinese folk religion also uses a similar type of joss paper. Joss paper, as well as other papier-mâché items, are also burned or buried in various Asian funerals, "to ensure that the spirit of the deceased has sufficient means in the afterlife." In Taiwan alone, the annual revenue that temples received from burning joss paper was US$400 million as of 2014.
There are currently seven official public holidays on Mainland China. Each year's holidays are announced about three weeks before the start of the year by the General Office of the State Council. A notable feature of mainland Chinese holidays is that weekends are usually swapped with the weekdays next to the actual holiday to create a longer holiday period.
The Dongzhi Festival or Winter Solstice Festival is a traditional Chinese festival celebrated during the Dongzhi solar term, which falls between December 21 and December 23.
The Cold Food or Hanshi Festival (寒食节) is a traditional Chinese holiday which developed from the local commemoration of the death of the Jin nobleman Jie Zitui in the 7th century BC under the Zhou dynasty, into an occasion across East Asia for the commemoration and veneration of ancestors by the 7th-century Tang dynasty. Its name derives from the tradition of avoiding the lighting of any kind of fire, even for the preparation of food. This practice originally occurred at midwinter for as long as a month, but the hardship this involved led to repeated attempts to ban its observance out of concern for its practitioners. By the end of the Three Kingdoms Period, it was limited to three days in the spring around the Qingming solar term. Under the Tang, ancestral observance was limited to the single day which is now the Tomb-Sweeping Festival. The Tomb-Sweeping Festival is an official holiday in several countries, and the Cold Food Festival which stretches either side of it continues to see some observance in China, South Korea, and Vietnam.
Along the River During the Qingming Festival is a handscroll painting attributed to the Song dynasty painter Zhang Zeduan (1085–1145) and copied or recreated many times in the following centuries. It captures the daily life of people and the landscape of the capital, Bianjing during the Northern Song. The theme is often said to be the spirit and worldly commotion at the Qingming Festival, rather than the holiday's ceremonial aspects, such as tomb sweeping and prayers. Read right to left, as a viewer would unroll it, successive scenes reveal the lifestyle of all levels of the society from rich to poor as well as economic activities in both rural areas and the city, and offer glimpses of clothing and architecture. The painting is considered the most renowned work among all Chinese paintings, and it has been called "China's Mona Lisa."
Events and festivals in Macau.
Qīngtuán, also written as Tsingtuan, is a green-colored dumpling originating from Jiangnan and common throughout China. It is made of glutinous rice mixed with Chinese mugwort or barley grass. It is usually filled with sweet red or black bean paste. The exact technique for making qingtuan is quite complicated and the grass involved is only edible in the early spring, so it is typically only available around the time of the Qingming Festival (April 4 or 5), with which the rice cake has become associated. Nowadays, qingtuan sold in most convenience stores in China are made of glutinous rice mixed with matcha. Modern versions use a wider variety of fillings, such as rousong or salted egg yolk.
Chinese ancestor veneration, also called Chinese ancestor worship, is an aspect of the Chinese traditional religion which revolves around the ritual celebration of the deified ancestors and tutelary deities of people with the same surname organised into lineage societies in ancestral shrines. Ancestors, their ghosts, or spirits, and gods are considered part of "this world". They are neither supernatural nor transcendent in the sense of being beyond nature. The ancestors are humans who have become godly beings, beings who keep their individual identities. For this reason, Chinese religion is founded on veneration of ancestors. Ancestors are believed to be a means of connection to the supreme power of Tian as they are considered embodiments or reproducers of the creative order of Heaven. It is a major aspect of Han Chinese religion, but the custom has also spread to ethnic minority groups.
Chinese folklore features a rich variety of ghosts, monsters, and other supernatural creatures. According to traditional beliefs a ghost is the spirit form of a person who has died. Ghosts are typically malevolent and will cause harm to the living if provoked. Many Chinese folk beliefs about ghosts have been adopted into the mythologies and folklore of neighboring East Asian cultures, notably Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Beliefs about ghosts are closely associated with Chinese ancestor worship, where much have been incorporated into Buddhism and in turn influenced and created uniquely Chinese Buddhist beliefs about the supernatural.
An ancestral shrine, hall or temple, also called lineage temple, is a temple dedicated to deified ancestors and progenitors of surname lineages or families in the Chinese tradition. Ancestral temples are closely linked to Confucian philosophy and culture and the emphasis that it places on filial piety.
Jie Zhitui, also known as Jie Zitui, was an ancient aristocrat who served the Jin prince Chong'er during the Spring and Autumn period of Chinese history. Chinese legend holds that when Chong'er finally ascended to power as the duke of Jin, Jie either refused or was passed over for any reward, despite his great loyalty during the prince's times of hardship. Jie then retired to the forests of Jin in what is now central Shanxi with his mother. Supposedly, the duke so desired to repay Jie's years of loyalty that, when Jie declined to present himself at court, he ordered a forest fire to compel the recluse out of hiding. Instead, Jie and his mother were killed by the fire on Mt Mian. By the Han, Jie was being revered in central Shanxi as a Taoist immortal. He was annually commemorated with a ritual avoidance of fire that, despite many official bans, eventually became China's Cold Food and Qingming Festivals.
Mount Mian, also known by its Chinese name Mianshan, is a mountain in the town of Mianshan in Jiexiu, Jinzhong, in central Shanxi Province in North China. Its official scenic area opened in the year 2000 and covers 75 km2 (29 sq mi), with about 400 attractions grouped into 14 tourist areas.
The Jingchu Suishiji, also known by various English translations, is a description of holidays in central China during the 6th and 7th centuries. It was compiled by Du Gongzhan in the Sui or early Tang as a revised, annotated edition of Zong Lin's mid-6th-century Record of Jingchu or Jingchuji. The original Record is now lost; the original text of the Jingchu Suishiji seems to have been lost as well, with current editions consisting of various attempts of Ming and Qing scholars to recover the text from fragments in other works.
The Double Sixth Festival is a Chinese traditional festival, the annual festival takes place on the sixth day of the sixth month of the Chinese calendar. The festival has different names among different areas in China and varies in practices within Chinese ethnic groups. The most recognized official name is Tiankuang Festival (天贶节) announced by Emperor Zhenzong of the Song dynasty, meaning the gift or reward from heaven. The most well-known custom is to bring all outfits, and books out and put them under the sunlight, people believe that doing this would not only prevent things becoming mildewed or damaged by worms but also brings fortune to themselves. The old saying from the Ming dynasty in China classifies this behavior observed in different social classes: "At June 6, scholars will dry their books in sun, women will dry their clothes in sun and farmers will pray for their harvest." The festival has lost some of its significance in China because of changes in social structure and reasons like farming technology improvement.
Decoration Days in Southern Appalachia and Liberia are a living tradition of group ancestor veneration observances which arose by the 19th century. The tradition was subsequently preserved in various regions of the United States, particularly in Utah Mormon culture. While Decoration practices are localized and can be unique to individual families, cemeteries, and communities, common elements unify the various Decoration Day practices and are thought to represent syncretism of Christian cultures in 19th century Southern Appalachia with pre-Christian influences from the British Isles and Africa. Appalachian and Liberian cemetery decoration traditions pre-date the United States Memorial Day holiday.
Chinese burial money a.k.a. dark coins are Chinese imitations of currency that are placed in the grave of a person that is to be buried. The practice dates to the Shang dynasty when cowrie shells were used, in the belief that the money would be used in the afterlife as a bribe to Yan Wang for a more favourable spiritual destination. The practice changed to replica currency to deter grave robbers, and these coins and other imitation currencies were referred to as clay money (泥錢) or earthenware money (陶土幣).
