Sending my regards to my ancestors on Qingming Festival

Ms. Vu Thi Hang, from Hai Duong City, currently working in Hanoi, took the opportunity to buy offerings to return to her hometown to visit the graves with her family on the weekend. For her, this is not only an occasion to show respect to her ancestors but also an opportunity to reunite and bond generations in the family.

Many people bring clean water and scented water to clean and tidy up their ancestors' tombs on the occasion of Thanh Minh Festival at Hai Duong City People's Cemetery.

In Phu Lien village, Hong Phong commune (Nam Sach), Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien is busy buying chrysanthemums to plant at her ancestors' graves.

Mr. Pham Van Quan, owner of a chrysanthemum garden in Phu Lien village, said that every year on Thanh Minh festival, people buy many chrysanthemums because this type of flower symbolizes filial piety and respect.

Mrs. Pham Thi Vuong in Van Tai village, Hong Phong commune, took the opportunity with her grandchildren to clean the ancestors' graves before worshiping at home the next day. For her, taking care of the graves is not only a way to show gratitude but also a way to educate her children and grandchildren about family traditions.

Not only adults, many young people also have the opportunity to understand more about traditional customs. Nguyen Kim Hiep (born in 2011) eagerly went with his grandmother to visit the graves, thanks to which he had the opportunity to understand the meaning of Thanh Minh Festival and appreciate family traditions more.

After visiting the graves, families return home to prepare offerings. Although April 4 is the Qingming Festival, Mr. Nguyen Van Tap's family in Doan Tung commune (Thanh Mien) started preparing offerings on April 3 because all family members were gathered together.

The offering tray is also simple, including familiar dishes such as sticky rice, boiled chicken, ham, bamboo shoot soup... Because according to Mr. Tap, whether simple or elaborate, the most important thing is the sincerity of the descendants, showing the morality of "remembering the source of water when drinking", showing gratitude to the deceased during the Qingming festival.

In addition to the local grave-sweeping ritual and offering rice, the Phan Van clan in Kim Anh commune (Kim Thanh) also went to Thanh Hoa to visit the grave of the Phan ancestor. This is a meaningful journey to show respect to ancestors and at the same time connect family members. In addition, every year, the Phan Van clan also organizes the Thanh Minh ceremony at the family temple and awards scholarships to children with good academic achievements.

Thanh Minh Festival is one of the most important holidays of the year for Vietnamese people. This is an occasion for descendants to express their filial piety and remember their ancestors and the deceased by cleaning graves, offering flowers and incense, and performing worship rituals. Not only having spiritual significance, Thanh Minh is also an occasion for families to reunite and educate their children about the tradition of "remembering the source of water when drinking".

This year, Qingming Festival begins on April 4 and ends on April 19. Qingming Festival falls on Friday, April 4 (the 7th day of the 3rd lunar month).

VAN TUAN

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/gui-long-thanh-ve-voi-to-tien-dip-tet-thanh-minh-408709.html