Date: 12th of the 3rd lunar month, usually around April 4th or
5th.
Place: Nationwide
Activities: Cleaning ancestors' graves, holding memorial ceremonies,
the making of offerings to pay respects to the dead, a spring family
outing, and flying kites. offerings to the dead, which include the
burning of ceremonial paper money, are both to honor ancestors and
to pray for a year of good luck.
Remarks: It is said that this festival was set up to memorialize
Jie Zitui, a man of noted loyalty during the Spring and Autumn Period
(770 - 476 B.C.). He helped his lord when his lord's crown and power
were in jeopardy. When his lord's power was restored, Mr. Jie refused
to accept a position his lord offered to him. He escaped with his
mother to a mountain. His lord set a fire to try to force him out,
and then force him accept the position. Mr. Jie died in the fire.
To commemorate Mr. Jie, his lord set aside the day he died as the
original Qingming Festival.
Hanshi day, the 4th day of the 4th lunar month, is the very day
just before Pure and Bright Day. According to a legend, the day
is in memory of Jie Zhitui who lived in the Spring and Autumn period.
Jie was a good official in the Jin state, who worked for chong er
(Wengong). When the Jin state was in turmoil, chong er was forced
to leave for other states. Jie took great pains to follow chong
er. He even cut his own flesh on his leg and boiled for hungry chong
er. After chong er got the monarch, he began to ignore and forget
Jie by and by. Jie was so sad that he went home and lived in seclusion
with his mother in mountains.
One day Wengong found Jie, a good official who sacrificed his flesh,
was not around him and felt so guilty that he in person went to
the mountains to look for Jie. But in endless trees and hills he
failed to find Jie. He thought, since Jie was very pious to his
mother, once the mountains were set on fire, he would come out with
his mother on his back. So he ordered to set the mountains on fire.
At last, the fire lasted more than 3 days, but Jie didn't show up.
He and his mother were found to be dead in arms after the fire was
put out.
This event made people respect and commemorate Jie. After that,
people like to worship him on his death day, which was just before
Pure and Bright Day. Because Jie was burned to death and people
were not willing to cook food on that day and would rather eat cold
food, that day is called Hanshi Day.
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