Taobao is providing tomb-sweeping services for those unable to pay respect to the graves of the departed, raising concerns about the commercialisation of the festival and declining filial piety. As always, netizens are outraged, with one saying: "Those who hire tomb-sweepers are more despicable than those who don't even bother to sweep the tombs."
The annual Tomb-Sweeping Day (April 5 this year), or Qingming Festival, denotes the time for people to go outside, enjoy the greenery of springtime and tend to the graves of their lost family members or friends. However, the overabundance of people and vehicles at cemeteries has turned the usually solemn occasion into a painful experience for many.
And when there’s a demand, supply usually follows. Taobao now features over 20 online stores offering tomb sweeping services at an average price of 500 yuan ($80). This will get you a flower basket and three bows to a tombstone of your choice, with pictures or video proving the services have been rendered. Other specific services will cost more.
As might be expected, these graveyard entrepreneurs drew harsh criticism online. "Tomb-sweeping is supposed to show one's love for the deceased. If one cannot be there, no filial piety is shown at all," said a man surnamed Zhang, who refuses to use the service.
Another random netizen slammed the idea on Weibo, calling those who hire tomb-sweepers “more despicable than those who don’t even bother to sweep the tombs.”
Another user said he did not understand why use of the service led so much drama: "I was hospitalized and it's really inconvenient to ask people to roll me to a cemetery. Why are people getting upset with me?"
Tomb-sweeping by proxy is not an uncommon practice, according to Professor Yu Jianrong from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He thinks it is acceptable to ask others for help in tomb-sweeping.
"Asking others to sweep tombs has been seen throughout our history. For example, if someone is far away from home, he can ask friends or family to do it for him. There were not many cases of this, but they did exist. So there is no need to be alarmed or surprised."
He does not approve of people trying to profit off the festival, though, saying "the commercialisation of the festival is surely out of place. The nature of tomb-sweeping is to pay respect, which is totally lost in piety by proxy."
[Image via Flickr]
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