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清 明 节（Tomb-Sweeping Day）

     Qing Ming Jie（All Souls' Day） Qing Ming is a time to

　　remember the dead and the dearly departed. More important, it is a period to

　　honour and to pay respect to one's deceased ancestors and family members.

　　Because it reinforces the ethic of filial piety, Qing Ming is a major Chinese

　　festival. 清明节是一个纪念祖先的节日。主要的纪念仪式是扫墓，扫墓是慎终追远、郭亲睦邻及行孝的具体表现；基于上述意义，清明节因此成为华人的重要节日。

　　Literally meaning "clear" (Qing) and "bright" (Ming), this Chinese festival

　　falls in early spring, on the 106th day after the winter solstice. It is a

　　"spring" festival, and it is an occasion for the whole family to leave the home

　　and to sweep the graves of their forebears. Chinese being practical people this

　　sweeping of the graves is given an extended period, that is, 10 days before and

　　after Qing Ming day. Among some dialect groups a whole month is allocated.

　　清明节是在仲春和暮春之交，也就是冬至后的106天。扫墓活动通常是在清明节的前十天或后十天。有些地域的人士的扫墓活动长达一个月。 　ORIGIN（起源）

　　Qing Ming is popularly associated with Jie Zi Zhui, who lived in Shanxi

　　province in 600 B.C. Legend has it that Jie saved his starving lord's life by

　　serving a piece of his own leg. When the lord succeeded in becoming the ruler of

　　a small principality, he invited his faithful follower to join him. However, Jie

　　declined his invitation, preferring to lead a hermit's life with his mother in

　　the mountains.

　　谈到清明节，有点历史知识的人，都会联想到历史人物介子椎。据历史记载，在两千多年以前的春秋时代，晋国公子重耳逃亡在外，生活艰苦，跟随他的介子椎不惜从自己的腿上割下一块肉让他充饥。后来，重耳回到晋国，作了国君（即晋文公，春秋五霸之一），大事封赏所有跟随他流亡在外的随从，惟独介子椎拒绝接受封赏，他带了母亲隐居绵山。

　　Believing that he could force Jie out by burning the mountain, the lord

　　ordered his men to set the forest on fire. To his consternation, Jie chose to

　　remain where he was and was burnt to death. To commemorate Jie, the lord ordered

　　all fires in every home to be put out on the anniversary of Jie's death. Thus

　　began the "cold food feast", a day when no food could be cooked since no fire

　　could be lit.

　　晋文公无计可施，只好放火烧山，他想，介子椎孝顺母亲，一定会带着老母出来。谁知这场大火却把介子椎母子烧死了。为了纪念介子椎，晋文公下令每年的这一天，禁止生火，家家户户只能吃生冷的食物，这就是寒食节的来源。

　　The "cold food" festival occurs on the eve of Qing Ming and is often

　　considered as part of the Qing Ming festival. As time passes, the Qing Ming

　　festival replaced the "cold food" festival. Whatever practice is observed，the

　　basic observation of Qing Ming is to remember one's elders by making a special

　　effort to visit their graves, ashes or ancestral tablets. To make the visit even

　　more meaningful, some time should be spent to remind the younger members of the

　　family of the lives and contributions of their ancestors, and the story of Jie

　　Zi Zhui who choose death over capitulation.

　　寒食节是在清明节的前一天，古人常把寒食节的活动延续到清明，久而久之，清明取代了寒食节。拜介子椎的习俗也变成了清明扫墓的习俗了。无论以何种形式纪念，为了使纪念祖先的仪式更有意义，我们应该让年轻一代的家庭成员了解先人过去的奋斗历史，当然，还要学习介子椎宁死不屈的气节。