Time to be a Filial Descendant
每逢清明節日, 總會聽到以下唐代著名詩人杜牧有一首膾炙人口的絕句《清明》
----（唐）杜 牧 (Tang Dynasty) Du Mu
清明時節雨紛紛，
It drizzles endlessly during the rainy season in Spring,
路上行人欲斷魂。
Travelers along the road look gloomy and miserable.
借問酒家何處有？
When I ask a shepherd boy where I can find a tavern,
牧童遙指杏花村。
He points at a distant hamlet nestling amidst apricot blossoms.
清明時節雨紛紛，
It drizzles endlessly during the rainy season in Spring,
路上行人欲斷魂。
Travelers along the road look gloomy and miserable.
借問酒家何處有？
When I ask a shepherd boy where I can find a tavern,
牧童遙指杏花村。
He points at a distant hamlet nestling amidst apricot blossoms.
雖然這兒幾天來的天氣突然有點兒轉涼, 但幸好今天天氣都良好, 前往掃墓沒有帶來任何的不便之處.
近這六至七年里, 因父母要返回國外生活的原故,于是便由我做代表往觀音廟拜祭外祖父,母(媽媽的父母亲). 最初有點兒不習慣, 看見別人能夠一家大小開開心心地掃墓去, 好像去野餐般似的, 但我就有些空虛感覺. 幸運地有位年長的亞姨(其中一位親友)每年也陪同我及教我如何準備有關的祭品, 例如: 香燭, 紙扎祭品衣包, 金銀紙…等, 食物有燒肉, 松糕, 茶, 酒, 水果…等. 原來整個拜祭的儀式也有那么多知識要學, 擺放食物位置, 先做那些, 後做那些...真是活到老, 學到老!
現在的家庭去掃墓, 好像是這特別日子裡, 大家又有一天來相聚. 有雙重意義. 家庭多成員的, 就會買多些祭品來掃墓. 掃墓完後, 便興高采烈地來吃一頓午飯或晚餐. 而家團成員比較少的, 則簡簡單單的籌備了.
無論是那一種形式來拜祭祖先也好, 只是代表孝子賢孫的一份孝道而已!
2 Comments:
Reading that (in translation) really awoke a warm, sentimental feeling in me. Living as part of a Japanese family, I also take part in the seasonal visits to the family graves to clean them and leave offerings. However, our whole family no longer does it together. First we were somehow split off from mother-in-law's family when they suddenly rebuilt the graves (without warning). Then my in-laws stopped coming with us. It's kind of sad, really, as family togetherness is an important part of the event.
Interesting that you mentioned 観音 (Kannon), the Goddess (or Boddhisatva) of Mercy. Right about the time I got married, the people of our neighborhood got together and built a new outdoor altar to Kannon near the temple where the graves are. Paying respects to Kannon is now part of the grave-visiting ritual, though I don't always participate.
Um, that’s a complicated relationship with in-laws.
Why don’t you and your wife ask them again to join all of you, ‘coz it’s still your whole family’s ancestors. Try it next time! :-)
My family and I aren’t the believers in Guanyin (Kannon/a Bodhisattva), we went to that Guan Yin Temple to sweep graves, because of the urn of my grandparents on my mother's side were placed in the back yard of Guan Yin Temple. Also, people would pay respects to Kannon naturally in the main hall of the Temple.
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