Why do you want to sweep the grave on the winter solstice?

In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the solstice in winter was the day of offering sacrifices to heaven and ancestors. On this day, the emperor went to the suburbs to hold a ceremony to worship heaven. On this day, people must pay homage to their parents. In addition to offering sacrifices to the families of their immediate ancestors, all families with ancestral halls or ancestral halls should hold a ceremony for this family, which is called "offering sacrifices to winter". At present, there are still some places that celebrate festivals from winter solstice to Sunday, and gradually expand to sweep graves. "However, at that time, I felt that this review did not provide more authoritative ancient books, so it was not credible.

Why do you want to sweep the grave on the winter solstice? The origin of sweeping graves in winter solstice.

The origin of sweeping graves from the winter solstice

According to "Li Zhou Guan Chun Shen Shi", "Winter solstice, to ghosts and gods." It seems that there have been winter solstice sacrifices since the Zhou Dynasty. The "Four-person Moon Order" of the Han Dynasty records that millet cakes should be used as offerings from the winter solstice to worship the gods and ancestors, and everyone should serve food and wine together, and also bless teachers and the elderly. This custom is the same as that of New Year's Day.

According to Gu Qiyuan's Tomb of Sacrificing Guests in Ming Dynasty and Shen Defu's Collection of Sacrificing Wanli Wild Events in Ming Dynasty, the Nanjing Mausoleum has a set of regular sacrifices, and Taizu Xiaozong has three sacrifices at the age of one, namely Tomb-Sweeping Day, Mid-Autumn Festival and Winter Solstice Festival. However, Prince Wen Yi's mausoleum is a year old and nine sacrifices, namely, Zheng Dan, Meng Chun, Qingming, Xia Meng, the anniversary of his death, Qiu Meng, the Central Plains, Mengdong, the winter solstice and the end of the year.

According to historical records, after the Ming Dynasty moved its capital to Beijing, it was built in Tianshou Mountain, a hundred miles away from the capital. Therefore, whenever Tomb-Sweeping Day, Mid-Autumn Festival and Winter Solstice Festival are held, the old ministers are usually asked to pay tribute to the imperial tomb.

What do you pay attention to on the solstice of winter? First, women don't have to wear makeup. Families should bring incense sticks and offerings. They shouldn't kill anything at the grave. It is fashionable to offer flowers, such as chrysanthemums (you can peel off the petals and scatter them in front of the grave monument, because some vendors will take them away and sell them immediately after you leave).

Second, after going to the cemetery, first start cleaning up the weeds around the cemetery, paying special attention to observing whether there are any miscellaneous trees on the grave, and if there are, pull them out; Then observe whether there is miscellaneous soil blocking Tang Xiaoming in front of the tomb and whether the drainage ditch is blocked.

The third is to observe whether the headstones in the tomb frame have collapsed or broken. If any abnormality is found, please ask the Feng Shui master for guidance and take measures to make up for it.

The fourth is to offer offerings, light incense and burn paper money (pay attention to fire prevention). Generally, we should lead our families to bow to their ancestors three times, and then read a eulogy to express the memory of the deceased by future generations.

The fifth is to set off firecrackers before departure (firecrackers can also be set off at designated places in the cemetery area, remember to prevent fire).

Sixth, after sweeping the grave, the whole family can have dinner, mainly vegetarian, and continue to eat wonton, jiaozi, glutinous rice balls, red bean porridge and other customs.