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Qingtuan, sweet green rice balls made from glutinous rice colored by green plant juice, is a traditional snack during the Qingming Festival. (PHOTO: VCG) |
The Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, is one of the most ancient festivals of the Chinese people. It is not only a solemn occasion of tomb sweeping and commemorating one's ancestors, but also a joyful festival for people to get close to nature and enjoy the joy of spring. It falls on the first day of the fifth solar term of the Chinese lunar calendar, around April 5.
The festival promotes filial piety and kinship, awakening the common family memory, but also fosters the cohesion and identity of family members and even the nation. In addition, it serves to integrate natural festivals and humanistic customs into one, which is the unity of heaven, earth, and human, fully reflecting the Chinese ancestors' pursuit of the harmonious unity of "heaven, earth, and human" and the idea of following the laws of nature in accordance with heaven and earth.