Can we visit graves in advance during the Qingming Festival in 2019?

Tomb sweeping on Qingming Festival is our traditional culture, but many people miss it for various reasons. So can we visit the graves in advance during Qingming Festival? How many days in advance can we visit the graves during the Qingming Festival? Let’s take a look at it together below.

Can I visit the graves early during Qingming Festival?

You can visit the graves in advance during the Qingming Festival.

1. Try to do tomb sweeping on Qingming Festival in advance. There was a folk saying in the past that "early Qingming Festival, late 11th Day". The earlier you pay homage to your ancestors on Qingming Festival, the better. It can be done one or two weeks before Qingming Festival. Don't rush to the Qingming Festival.

2. In addition, it is best to choose to sweep the tombs between 7:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. This is the time when the Yang energy is high in the day, and it is the best time for us to pay tribute to our ancestors.

3. Because after 3 o'clock in the afternoon the Yang energy has gradually subsided and the Yin energy has gradually increased. If you are unlucky or weak during this time period, it is easy to attract evil spirits to haunt you and cause harm to you.

You can visit the graves a few days in advance during the Qingming Festival

It is possible to visit graves in advance on Qingming Festival, but how long in advance depends on whether it is a new or old grave.

1. New Grave

Refers to those buried less than 3 years ago; the first tomb sweeping is on an auspicious day 10 days before the Qingming Festival; the second tomb sweeping is on the day before the Qingming Festival; the third tomb sweeping is on an auspicious day 10 days after the Qingming Festival;

2. Old graves

It refers to graves that have been buried for more than 3 years; the time for tomb sweeping can be chosen on any day within 10 days before or after the Qingming Festival, and there is no need to choose an auspicious day; when the date for tomb sweeping is selected, the specific time for tomb sweeping should be chosen at 5:00 a.m. on that day, that is, before the sun comes out. This is because traditional customs hold that ghosts and gods dare not come out to eat offerings before dawn. (Note: The fifth watch is around 4:00 a.m.)

When is the best time to visit graves during Qingming Festival?

According to folk customs, the best time to visit graves is Mao time, which is from 5 to 7 in the morning. This is when the sun just rises, so it is more suitable to visit graves at this time. First of all, Mao time is when the sun just rises, the yang energy is sufficient, and it is most appropriate to visit graves when yin and yang meet. Secondly, the sun at this time is not too scorching. When we climb the mountain, we will not feel the scorching sun and can be more comfortable. Therefore, generally speaking, the best time to visit the graves is Mao time (5 to 7 o'clock). But in many big cities today, most people have not gotten up yet at this time, and most people are still asleep and cannot get up so early, so many people will not choose to visit the graves at this time.

As a second best option, you can choose to visit the graves in the morning. It is more appropriate to visit the graves in the morning as the sun is relatively mild and the morning is also the time when yang energy is abundant. You will not encounter dirty things when visiting the graves at this time, nor will you bring unclean things home.

But it should be noted that it is best to visit the graves before three o'clock in the afternoon, that is to say, it is not allowed to visit the graves after three o'clock. If you go to visit the graves after three o'clock, it is very unlucky. You must know that after three o'clock the sun is about to set. After the sunset, the Yang energy is not sufficient. If we go to visit the graves at this time without the blessing of Yang energy, we may attract some unclean things and be haunted by some lonely ghosts nearby. Therefore, the best time to visit the graves is from 5 to 7 in the morning. To put it another way, visiting the graves in the morning is also very suitable, but do not choose to visit the graves after 3 in the afternoon.