"Qing Ming". Chinese Tomb Sweeping Day

I went out this afternoon with the intention of getting some photos to do a post about litter! Its never very far away from you wherever you are in the world and here in Borneo it's no exception. However, when I reached my destination - a 10 minute walk behind my apartment building - my post topic changed. Well it did and it didn't!

What I hadn't realised (though I knew it was coming up) was that today is Qing Ming in the Chinese Calender. "What", I hear you cry, "is Qing Ming?".

Qing Ming, 清明節 or Tomb Sweeping Day is the one day of the year when Chinese families will visit the graves of their ancestors. And my destination this afternoon happened to be the Chinese Cemetery! Spooky eh?  Most of my Chinese friends normally avoid going any where near a cemetery, all believing very much in ghosts! However, Qing Ming is the exception. It's meaning is "Clear Brightness", and falls in a period when the days are longer than the nights, and it is beleived to be an especially "yang" period.

A visit does not have to made today, it can be made 30 days either side of today.

Once you have located the grave of your ancestor (which can be quite a task as some of these cemetries are absolutely massive and sprawling and since your visit last year quite a few more graves will have appeared), you are supposed to say a prayer to the "hou tu", who is the deity looking after the grave. Then, leave some goodies like rice cakes, tea and wine. Many people leave things that the dead person enjoyed in life, cigarettes and even cans of Guiness Stout! Sadly, I did see one grave covered with toys and one with a baby bottle of milk - the deceased only being 1 month old when he'd died.

I was very careful and respectful around the tombs which are huge concrete constructions mostly, and if I accidentally trod on one I muttered an apology - you never know!

The photos above show fake money which is left on the grave, some incense which burns all over the place and smells wonderful, and some examples of the offerings left behind. You can't really see it but the photo in the top right shows a dried duck that someone offered! No plum sauce though! The local stray dogs and cats are going to have a wonderful feast tonight if the spirits are kind to them, then the ants will devour whatever is left tomorrow.

Some of the graves are very elaborate and contain lovely painted tiles like those in the collage below - a bit like those you see at chinese temples. Others have statues of lions or dragons - I guess to guard them. Its all much more colourful and fun that the graveyards back home which tend to be beautifully manicured and visited often. If you didn't know better, you could be mistaken for thinking you had stumbled upon a construction site!

Now, this bit kind of fits in nicely with what I originally intende to post about! It's all lovely and nice and respectful for you to visit your ancestors and sweep and tidy their graves, but come on guys! Look at all the rubbish which had been left behind! Just thrown down the grass banks all over the place. OK, there were no bins at this site but thats no excuse! Take it home lah! You should be ashamed if you were one of the visitors and this is your rubbish.

There - I managed to give you 2 posts for the price of one!