Houston Community News >> Chinese Use Internet For Offerings to Dead
4/4/2007 Beijing - Chinese
Internet users are turning to "online tombs" as an easier way to pay respects to
deceased relatives and others during an annual festival to honor the dead, state
media reported on Wednesday.
At least five million people have logged on to websites allowing them to offer
the dead everything from simple messages to the burning of electronic versions
of incense in the run-up to the yearly Tomb Sweeping Festival on Thursday, the
Beijing News reported.
Chinese turn out in droves for the festival each year to clean the graves and
tombs of their ancestors as a sign of respect, leaving behind myriad offerings
to comfort them in the afterlife.
Beijing's government is trying to promote the use of websites, typically set up
by public cemeteries, to cut down on the traffic jams that coincide with the
festival each year, the paper said.
The five million who used the online route have done so since April 1. Tomb
sweeping activities typically begin about two weeks before the actual festival.
The paper said the huge growth in online offerings is likely due in large part
to an increase in people paying respects to revered historical figures rather
than direct relatives.
(Contributed by AP)