"Let there be careful attention to performance of the funeral rites for parents, and let these be followed in later years by the ceremonies of sacrifice; then the virtue of the people will resume its proper excellence."
-Confucian Analects, Chapter IX
Chinese are among the most filial people in the world. They consider that reverence for parents and ancestors is the prime requisite of an ethical system and the basis for all human relations.
While parents are alive, children respect them and try to make them happy and see to their comfort. Deceased parents are regarded as personal deities to be honored at festival times.
The biggest festival specifically honoring the deceased is that of Ch'ing Ming, which means a clear, bright day -ideal for visiting graves and tombs. Ch'ing Ming usually falls on the 15th day after the vernal equinox. This year it lags a day behind and falls on April 5 because of intercalation.
The Ch'ing Ming festival has been observed since the T'ang dynasty (618-907). The day is the legendary birthday of Huang Ti (the Yellow Emperor), who is regarded as the progenitor of the Chinese race and supposedly reigned in the Middle Kingdom from 2697 to 2596 B.C. Legends say that the lunar calendar, ideographic writing, two-wheeled carts, shell coins and silk clothes came into use during the reign of Huang Ti.
After the establishment of the Republic in 1911, the National Government designated Ch'ing Ming as National Tomb Visiting Day. The National Government sent a high-ranking official to pay honor to Huang Ti at his tomb in Shensi province in the northwest. Since the government moved its seat to Taiwan in 1949, the national worship service has been held at the Martyrs' Shrine near the Grand Hotel in Taipei.
The people who go out to graves and tombs on Ch'ing Ming cut the grass and scrub the tombstone before offering their sacrifices. This gives C'ing Ming another name - that of Sao Mu Chieh (Tomb Sweeping Festival). Meat, rice cakes, fruit, wine and flowers are spread out. Member of the family hold burning joss sticks as they bow to the departed. The eldest invokes the spirits of the dead to return for a family reunion. Other members of the family burn joss paper, a symbol of money in the Underworld, and place a handful of it on the tombstone. The Taiwanese call this kua chih (paper hanging), meaning that the offspring are grateful for the wealth left them by their ancestors. The foot-long joss sticks take about half an hour to burn out. Firecrackers are then set off to end the ceremony.
"Bone-washing" may take place in Taiwan and some parts of South China. The initial grave or tomb is a temporary resting place. Several years later, when decomposition has been completed, the relatives open the burial place and recover the bones. These are washed by a specialist and placed in a two-foot urn for permanent ensconcement at the family tomb, which may have anywhere from 20 to more than 100 urns. This is a Taoist custom and all procedures are directed by a geomancer.
(File photo)
Don't tarry on the way to emperorship
良藥苦口 Liang yao k'u k'ou (Good medicine is bitter to the taste).
Western equivalent - If it's good for you, it must taste bad.
In 209 B.C., a year after the death of Shih Huang-ti (First Emperor) of Ch'in, Hsiang Yu and Liu Pang revolted against the Ch'in court.
Two years later, Liu Pang forestalled Hsiang Yu by occupying Hsienyang, the capital. A warlord of peasant origin, Liu Pang was tempted by the luxuries of the palace and the beauties of the harem. Worried by his master's excessive indulgence in wine and women, an outspoken general named Fan K'uai admonished him:
"Sir, we haven't yet won China. We shouldn't stay in this palace and amuse ourselves. We must pitch our camp in the field and subjugate our enemies."
Liu Pang turned a deaf ear. Then Chang Liang, a general noted for his wisdom, said:
"As a farmer's son, you couldn't have entered this palace had it not been for the tyranny of the Ch'in emperor. What the people want is the liquidation of every remnant of the Ch'in army. To win friends, you must be sympathetic to those who have been oppressed. If you continue to indulge yourself in wine and women, people will regard you as a successor to Shih Huang-ti and King Chieh of Hsia. Honest advice is usually unpleasant to the ear and good medicine is bitter to the taste. Please follow General Fan's advice."
Liu Pang nodded and pitched his camp at Pashang to the east of Sian. He summoned the local elders and gave three assurances: 1. All laws and regulations of Ch'in were to be abrogated. 2. He who killed was to be put to death. 3. He who injured others or stole their property was to be punished according to the crime.
The elders rejoiced and pledged their support to Liu Pang. In 202 B.C., Liu Pang defeated Hsiang Yu and became the first emperor of the Han dynasty.
All that glitters isn't always truthful
笑裏藏刀 Hsiao li ts'ang tao (To conceal a dagger in his smile).
Western equivalent - There's daggers in men's smiles.
- Shakespeare: Macbeth, II-3
During the reign of Emperor Hsuan Tsung (713-755) of the Tang dynasty, there was a prime minister named Li Lin-fu. He was a wicked man but always pretended to be polite to his colleagues and friends.
Once he had a dispute with Li Shih-chih, one of the emperor's favorite chamberlains. To trap Shih-chih, the prime minister fabricated a story:
"Shih-chih, I heard of a rich gold deposit at Huashan. If the gold is mined, His Majesty's treasury will be greatly enriched. I'm too busy with state affairs. Will you please report this to His Majesty?"
"Surely," agreed the chamberlain.
When the emperor heard of the gold, he summoned the prime minister to plan extraction of the treasure.
"Sire, I heard of the Huashan gold deposit a long time ago," the prime minister said. "However, I did not report it to Your Majesty. According to the geomancers, Huashan is comparable to the head of an emperor. If we did any mining there, I fear harm would come to the royal household."
Believing the prime minister's story, the emperor dismissed the chamberlain. However, Hsuan Tsung learned of the report's falsity after the death of the chamberlain. The emperor then ordered posthumous restoration of Li Shih-chih's title and honors.