PS: First, worship ancestors

Ancestor worship is a grand folk activity during the Spring Festival, which is a series of symbolic actions or rituals carried out according to the requirements of religion or social customs. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 infoPeople worship their ancestors and worship the gods during the Spring Festival, which is actually to pay New Year's greetings to their ancestors and gods. While worshipping ancestors, some places also worship the gods of heaven and land, and some places also worship the Jade Emperor (the highest god in Chinese folk beliefs) and the Queen Mother (the wife of the Jade Emperor). The parents officiate, burn three incense sticks, bow down, pray for a good harvest, and finally burn paper, commonly known as "sending money and grain".

1. Worship ancestors

Ancestor worship is a grand folk activity during the Spring Festival, which is a series of symbolic actions or rituals carried out according to the requirements of religion or social customs. During the Spring Festival, people worship their ancestors and worship the gods, which is actually to pay New Year's greetings to their ancestors and gods. While worshipping ancestors, some places also worship the gods of heaven and land, and some places also worship the Jade Emperor (the highest god in Chinese folk beliefs) and the Queen Mother (the wife of the Jade Emperor). The parents officiate, burn three incense sticks, bow down, pray for a good harvest, and finally burn paper, commonly known as "sending money and grain".

Chinese people have a tradition of chasing the distance cautiously, and they never forget to worship their dead ancestors during the festival, and the Spring Festival is no exception. Offering food or flowers as a token of gratitude is a common ritual in China, and the form of ancestor worship may vary depending on religious beliefs, but the significance of commemorating ancestors is the same. One of the main contents of family rituals. According to the folk concept, one's ancestors, like heaven, earth, gods, and Buddhas, should be worshiped seriously. Because the "spirits in heaven" of the ancestors are always caring for and watching the descendants of future generations, earthly people should pray and repay their protection and blessings through sacrifices. Ancestors must be worshiped during the Spring Festival. Remember your ancestors and inspire future generations. However, due to the different customs in different places. Therefore, some places worship before the Chinese New Year's Eve dinner; In some places, worship around Chinese New Year's Eve; In some places, worship in front of the opening of the house on the morning of the first day of the new year; In Taiwan, on the afternoon of Chinese New Year's Eve, the last time of the year to worship ancestors. There are also places where the first day of the new year is after worshipping at home. I also have to go to the ancestral hall to worship my ancestors. There are also those who go to the grave to worship their ancestors, commonly known as tomb sacrifices, mainly to burn incense, make offerings, and bow down in the cemetery. In modern times, it is common to go to the cemetery of relatives to pay respects.

1. Historical evolution

In ancient times, this custom was very popular. Due to the different rituals and customs in various places, the forms of ancestor worship are also different, some go to the field to worship the ancestral tombs, some go to the ancestral hall to worship the ancestors, and most of them put the ancestral tablets in the main hall in turn at home, and display the offerings. Then the worshippers go to the incense and bow down in order of the oldest and youngest. The Han people worship their ancestors, most of them make fish and meat bowl dishes, and serve them in high bowls, which has the meaning of bells ringing and eating. Most of the southerners living in Beijing are particularly grand, most of them are eight bowls of dishes, with hot pot in the middle, cups and chopsticks according to the spiritual position, on Chinese New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, and New Year's Eve. Fan the hot pot and change the dish at any time. The banner people worship their ancestors, and the Mongolian and Mongolian flag people fry yellow rice noodles with butter, and fry them with sesame oil when they withdraw the offering. Dip it in sugar for another flavor. Manchurian flag people worship ancestors, offering walnut crisp, hibiscus cake, apple, vegetarian wax sandalwood. Silence is abnormal. Chinese New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are offered vegetarian cooked dumplings, and Lantern Festival is offered on New Year's Eve. Burn incense and kowtow every morning and evening to offer new tea. Although the forms of ancestor worship are different. Most of them are hanging on Chinese New Year's Eve, and the last yuan night is withdrawn, and relatives and friends are close, and they must also knock on the ancestral hall when paying New Year's greetings. Not only is it prudent to pursue it far away, but also because the virtue of respecting its ancestors has also been preserved.

2. The source of ancestor worship

Sacrifices are divided into two categories: ancestor worship and various ghosts and gods. Sacrifices originated in the Shang Dynasty, where merchants believed that ghosts and gods had great authority and could decide people's fate, so they revered ghosts and gods very much. They divided the ghosts and gods into three categories: the gods, the earthly gods, and the human ghosts, and the main objects of worship were the human ghosts and ancestors. They believed that even though their ancestors were dead, their souls still existed and could bring misfortune and blessings to their descendants, so they set a daily schedule and made devout sacrifices. This concept of ancestor worship has continued to this day and has formed the characteristics of our culture. In addition, Ding Lan (one of the 24 filial pieties) in the Eastern Han Dynasty made a living by chopping wood, and was often angry because his mother failed to deliver food on time. One day, because he saw the crow feeding back his kindness, he saw his mother coming and went forward, and his mother was puzzled, and in a panic, he committed suicide by throwing himself into the river. Ding Lan couldn't rescue in time, only a tree, so he took it as his mother to worship day and night, this filial piety spread among the people, and also formed the origin of the custom of people worshipping their ancestors in the future.

Ancestor worship folk customs have been along for thousands of years, and it is an ancient festival with profound significance. According to historical records, during the Qin and Han dynasties, tomb sacrifices have become an indispensable ritual activity. The Biography of Yan Yannian records that even if Yan is thousands of miles away from Beijing, he will "return to the East China Sea to sweep the tomb" in Qingming. With the increasing strength of ancestor worship and kinship consciousness, the tomb sacrifices that were not included in the norms in ancient times were also included in the "Five Rites", and the promotion of the imperial court also made the tomb sacrifice activities more popular.

3. Ancestor worship etiquette

The sacrificial rites include offering incense, reading blessings, offering rice soup, serving tea, offering silk, offering wine, offering food boxes, offering meat, offering blessings (blessings), burning blessings, and bowing to the gods. In some places, when the paper is burned, the chief priest will offer a glass of wine in front of the god, and then the priest will send it to the place where the silk is burned, and the wine will be drunk on it, and the wine will be dripped, which is a "heart" character to show the piety of the sacrificer to offer the money and silk. In the important part of the sacrificial process, there are also several gongs and drums or string accompaniment to add enthusiasm to the ritual. Atmosphere. At the end of the ceremony, the offerings such as pork and mutton are distributed to the delegates. There are also sacrifices that are used for banquets and sacrifices, and only a small number of sacrifices are given to a small number of sacrificers, squires, elders, etc.

4. Chinese New Year's Eve to worship ancestors

Chinese New Year's Eve ancestor worship is one of the traditional customs in China that have been handed down to this day. On the one hand, it originates from the traditional concept of "filial piety first" and "chasing the distance in the end", expressing filial piety and nostalgia to the ancestors and ancestors on the occasion of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new; On the other hand, it is due to the belief that ancestral gods can bless future generations and make them prosperous. This traditional custom has been passed down from generation to generation, and people always hold a sacrificial ceremony every Chinese New Year's Eve to give thanks and pray for blessings. In the past, ancestor worship ceremonies were generally held in the ancestral hall on the afternoon of Chinese New Year's Eve, and the same surname clan dressed in costume participated, and the ceremony was more solemn. Ordinary people generally set up wine and delicacies in front of the ancestral shrines at home before eating the New Year's dinner, and worship them.

In the agricultural areas of northeastern China, the most important ancestor worship events of the year are generally held at the end of the year, and most of them are held from the 28th of the lunar month to Chinese New Year's Eve. The form of the sacrifice varies according to the conditions. Some families whose ancestors were high-ranking officials and prosperous people with solid financial resources often built their own ancestral halls, commonly known as "family temples", and their ancestor worship activities were held here. On the day of ancestor worship, the main male members of each branch of the local family gather at the family temple, scrub the used offerings in advance, prepare the offerings, and hang the gods (tablets) and portraits (commonly known as images) of the ancestors of each generation in order of generation. Subsequently, under the auspices of the patriarch, everyone paid homage to the ancestors in batches according to their seniority.

The ancestor worship of each family is a formality. A lot of the place is done before dinner. First of all, they went to their own tombs to worship, some just kowtowed, and some had to use the kang table to carry a table of wine and food, which was called "sending a banquet to the ancestors". The order of sacrifice is, of course, starting with the one with the highest rank in the cemetery. Put the kang table in front of the grave, kowtow, pour a cup of wine on the ground, and after the sacrifice is completed in turn, bury the food in the soil, which is considered to be "sent" to the ancestors, and at the same time burn paper in front of the grave, which is regarded as the "pocket money" during the New Year of filial piety to the ancestors.

The main sacrifice is carried out at home, mostly around the time of Chinese New Year's Eve dinner, which is called "taking the ancestors home for the New Year". Because it is said that the spirits of the deceased cannot move during the day, they have to wait until after dark, which is typical of the Manchu practice. First of all, the incense burner, incense tube, candlestick (commonly known as five offerings) or wooden incense plates, placed on the west kang or on the lid of the hall box, the genealogy "pedigree" (lineage table) usually placed in the "ancestral box" please open and hang on the west wall, some people because they are not the main branch of the long house has no pedigree, then according to the record of the pedigree, write the "name" of their direct ancestors of each generation on a long piece of paper and hang it, commonly known as "ancestral strips" or "pedigree strips", and some are placed wooden tablets. After the hanging, the incense began to be offered, and the whole family kowtowed in turn. Offerings are usually pasta and fruits. Many families specially steam white noodle steamed buns for Chinese New Year's Eve, each with a red dot on it, and each two planes are stacked together in a group, usually three to five levels, each served in a white porcelain plate. These offerings have been placed until the fifth day of the first lunar month, and from the first day to the fifth day of the first lunar month, two times a day in the morning and evening in front of the ancestral shrine (spectrum), until the evening of the fifth lunar month, after the "old ancestor" is sent away, that is, the spectrum or tablet is returned to its original place. There are also areas where some memorial services are held on Chinese New Year's Eve for grandparents or parents who have recently passed away. The more characteristic thing is to fold the clothes he wore before his death and put them on the kang, and then the younger generations kneel down and kowtow, and say "xx (the name of the elders) to go home for the New Year". In addition, the paper is burned at the root of the "floor-mounted" chimney at the head of Fangshantou, because folklore says that this is the place where the souls of the deceased of the family often live. When burning paper, you also have to "mutter" some words in your mouth to express your thoughts and ask for blessings, and I believe that your ancestors will hear them, bringing happiness and health to your family. (To be continued.) )

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