Online “cloud mourning” — a civilized way to express our grief.

When the swallows return, it is the time of the new spring festival; after the pear blossoms have fallen, comes Qingming.

As the year turns and the grasses turn green, another Qingming Festival arrives.

Since ancient times, the Qingming Festival has been marked by customs such as spring outings to scenic spots, enjoying the greenery and wearing willow branches, and paying respects to one’s ancestors. Yet this year, the festival has taken on a distinct character. Affected by the COVID‑19 pandemic, all cemeteries, columbaria, and other funeral service institutions across the city have suspended in-person grave‑visiting and collective memorial ceremonies.

The Municipal Party Committee’s Office of Spiritual Civilization issued the “Notice on Launching the Online Thematic Practice Activity ‘Our Festivals: Qingming,’” and established a “Cloud Memorial” online platform. The notice called on all districts, counties, development zones, and municipal departments to organize citywide activities for cadres and the public to pay tribute to sages and martyrs online, as well as to engage in classic Qingming‑related readings from home, thus observing a civilized and environmentally friendly Qingming Festival. Following the issuance of the notice, Xi’an residents enthusiastically responded to the “Cloud Memorial” initiative, expressing their grief through family remembrance gatherings, virtual floral tributes, recitations of Qingming poems and prose, and other civilized forms of commemoration.

Uncivilized practices such as burning paper money and scattering joss coins are rarely seen on the streets.

Over several consecutive nights, reporters patrolled several intersections in our city and found virtually no uncivilized ritual practices such as burning paper money or scattering joss paper.

As early as late March, the Municipal Party Committee’s Civilization Office, the Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau, and the Municipal Veterans Affairs Bureau jointly issued an appeal, urging everyone to resolutely refrain from crowded memorial rites and from unsafe, uncivilized practices such as indiscriminate burning of joss paper and scattering of spirit money, and to opt instead for green, frugal, and civilized online mourning methods. During random street interviews, many residents expressed strong support for this new trend of changing customs and promoting civility.

“In the past, I too used to burn paper money at street corners to honor my loved ones. After all, this tradition has been passed down through generations for many years. Although we all know that such practices are neither environmentally friendly nor sustainable, emotionally speaking, it still felt like we had to go through the motions,” Ms. Liu, a resident of Sifu Street, told our reporter. “This year, due to the pandemic, I’ve fundamentally changed these old‑fashioned, feudal notions. Instead, I paid my respects to my family online at a virtual cemetery. Honoring our departed loved ones is ultimately about expressing our grief and affection, and there are certainly more civilized ways to convey our longing for them.”

“I wrote a commemorative poem for my late parents, using this way to express my longing for them,” said Mr. Li, a retired teacher who lives near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. “This year, all major cemeteries have suspended in-person memorial services, so my wife and I didn’t go to the cemetery. Instead, we respectfully penned a memorial poem with a brush at home. This poem conveys our most heartfelt emotions and feels even more meaningful than paying our respects at the cemetery.”

The cemetery has launched online services such as ritual‑offering reservations and proxy grave‑tending.

Recently, all cemeteries, columbariums, and other funeral service institutions across the city have suspended in-person grave-sweeping and collective public memorial ceremonies. Over the past few days, reporters visited several cemeteries, including the Fengqishan Cultural Memorial Park in Chang’an District and the Baling Cemetery in Baqiao District, and found that their gates were closed, with no public access for visitors. At the same time, these facilities have introduced a range of services, such as online memorial rites and appointment‑based surrogate grave‑sweeping.

“Starting March 1, we launched a memorial‑service‑by‑proxy offering and have already completed more than 800 orders,” Hu Ying, a staff member at the Fengqishan Cultural Memorial Park in Chang’an District, told reporters. “We provide personalized proxy services for residents in need, including wiping tombstones, laying flowers, writing prayer cards, reciting memorial texts, lighting incense and candles, and dozens of other options. Customers can choose individual services or opt for pre‑arranged packages. We promptly share updates on the proxy services via photos or videos, allowing participants to take part in the entire ritual from home using their smartphones.”

“My family is buried in the new section of the Baling Cemetery in Xi’an. On the eve of this year’s Qingming Festival, I logged into the cemetery’s official WeChat account and set up an online memorial hall. I added my loved ones’ names and photos to the hall, so I can pay my respects anytime, anywhere,” said citizen Ling Chen. “Although I couldn’t visit the gravesite in person this Qingming, this cloud‑based form of remembrance is even better—it lets us express our longing for our departed loved ones whenever and wherever we are.”

Zhang Chao, a staff member at the Xian Baling Cemetery New Area, said: “Creating an online memorial hall for 24-hour mourning is free of charge. At present, the Xian Baling Cemetery New Area has more than 2,000 registered users. Meanwhile, we launched a paid proxy grave‑tending service at the end of February, and we have already processed over 4,000 reservation requests.”

Let the national spirit be passed down enduringly in another form.

Although we cannot pay our respects at the cemetery in person, our heartfelt remembrance of the heroic martyrs is being expressed in other ways.

On March 31, the Third Primary School of the Economic Development Zone held a “Red Scarf Cloud Classroom” themed “Honoring Our Martyrs, Learning from the Pioneers, and Becoming Pioneers.” Online thematic class meetings were conducted in each Young Pioneer troop, guiding young pioneers to write heartfelt messages and reflections in tribute to revolutionary martyrs and the heroes who sacrificed their lives in the fight against the epidemic, thereby fostering in them the noble aspiration to “learn from the pioneers from an early age and become pioneers when they grow up.” The school’s Young Pioneer Headquarters issued a call to all young pioneers to lead by example, taking the initiative to abandon outdated customs and practice civilized mourning; families were encouraged to participate in online activities such as offering virtual flowers and leaving messages of remembrance, expressing gratitude and reverence for our martyrs, ancestors, and sages.

In Gaoling District, three poetry recital events will be held at venues including the Gaoling District CPC History Memorial Hall, the Former Site Museum of Northwest Minzu University, and the Jingwei River Boundary Marker. The events will be themed “Remember History, Honor Our Martyrs,” “Commemorate Revolutionary Heroes and Promote Patriotic Spirit,” and “Solemnly Praise the Motherland.” No audience seating will be provided on site; instead, contestants’ performances will be recorded as videos, and judging will be conducted through online voting and likes.

Xi’an Aerospace Base International Incubator Co., Ltd. held an event titled “Our Festivals: Qingming—A Recitation of Classic Poems,” during which participants recited timeless Qingming poems to honor their ancestors, martyrs, and sages, particularly the heroes who sacrificed their lives in the fight against the COVID‑19 pandemic, thereby promoting filial piety, encouraging virtuous conduct, and upholding both filial devotion and the spirit of heroism.

On the annual Qingming Festival, each flower and tree carries our heartfelt remembrance. Mourning is rooted in the heart, not bound by outward forms. Family memorial gatherings, writing commemorative essays, reciting Qingming poems, crafting cards of longing—these eco‑friendly, civilized, and modern ways of paying respects allow love to endure “in the cloud” and ensure that our national spirit is passed down in a new, lasting form.