ZHAO JUN (pseudonym) picked a flower and took a handful of soil home from the cemetery where his grandmother was buried every Qingming Festival, or Tomb-Sweeping Day, which fell yesterday this year.

“It makes me feel like she is here for me,” said Zhao, who is from Yinchuan in Northwest China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. “My grandma is part of this land, in the flowers and the soil.”

Looking at the eco-friendly burial area with its green lawns, blooming flowers and lush pines and cypresses, he cannot help thinking about his struggle four years ago.

“Grandma wanted everything to be simple and to return to nature peacefully. After a discussion, my parents and I chose a tree burial, but some relatives objected strongly, with some even accusing us of being unfilial or stingy,” Zhao said.

Funerals are of great importance in China, with the money spent on funerals and tombs once being used as a standard to judge the filial piety of descendants of the deceased.

The funerals of those who died of old age, like Zhao’s grandmother, were often grand affairs.

“Promoting eco-friendly burials is part of funeral reform, which embodies social, ideological and cultural progress, and is of great significance to environmental protection,” said You Jianqing, an official from Ningxia’s civil affairs department.

In Ningxia, those who choose green burials, such as lawn burials, tree burials and sea burials, which do not involve land or involve less land and use fewer non-degradable materials, can enjoy a one-time grant ranging from 2,000 yuan (about US$291) to 5,000 yuan as well as a reduction in basic funeral expenses.

Statistics from the regional civil affairs department reveal that eco-friendly burials have been performed for 3,052 deceased individuals in Yinchuan so far. The city has subsidized 24.15 million yuan in basic funeral service fees for cremation.

After her mother’s death, Wang Qian (pseudonym) followed her wishes and buried part of her ashes in the flower beds in Fushouyuan cemetery in Yinchuan. The remaining ashes were made into a necklace.

“It’s one of our innovative products. The ashes are turned under high temperatures and high pressure into something like a mineral,” said Lin Yi, executive deputy general manager of Fushouyuan cemetery.

Lin said the cemetery started to make the necklace in 2019, having served over 200 customers thus far. “Green burials have become more acceptable through scientific and technological innovation.”

Over the years, eco-friendly tomb sweeping in various forms has gained more ground during Qingming, the traditional Chinese festival that pays tribute to the dead.

In recent days, the Beijing All Buddha Cemetery of Overseas Chinese invited teachers and students from famous conservatories in Beijing to perform gentle live music, providing soothing sounds for mourners.

At the Babaoshan Funeral Home in Beijing, staff slowly placed paper cranes and paper boats carrying blessings into a small pool. The paper is degradable and made of water-soluble wood pulp, with the characters on them printed with food-grade pigments.

Compared with the Chinese traditions of burning joss paper and setting off firecrackers, water-soluble paper is safer and more environmentally friendly, the funeral home said.

People in the Chaoshan region of South China’s Guangdong Province have a long tradition of worshiping their ancestors. “This year’s Qingming Festival will embrace crowds returning home for tomb sweeping, and we began to prepare for them last month,” said Huang Bingzhuang, deputy director of the civil affairs bureau in the city of Shantou.

Shantou’s Xiang’an Yongjiu cemetery has launched an appointment service on its official WeChat account so that mourners can stagger their visiting times.

“Local authorities have encouraged the public to present fruits and flowers instead of burning paper money,” Huang said.

“During these ceremonies, people cherish and appreciate the past while placing their hope in the future,” said Huang.

“We hope that by advocating for eco-friendly tomb sweeping, our cultural traditions will be carried on with sustainability.”

(Xinhua)