05 / 24
Clear and Bright
Through Qingming's mist and rain, new grass greens the paths.
Solar term date
Dates follow the Hong Kong Observatory’s calendar. They are civil dates, rather than precise astronomical times.
About this solar term
Clear and Bright, or Qingming, begins at solar longitude 15°. It is both a solar term and a traditional occasion for remembering ancestors.
Seasonal lore describes flowering trees and appearing rainbows, alongside the old belief that voles become quails. The latter is a historical belief, not a biological event.
Families may tend graves, make offerings and take spring outings. Weather and flowering seasons differ across regions, but remembrance and renewal remain central themes.
Seasonal signs
Paulownia blooms and rainbows appear; old lore tells of voles becoming quails.
Traditional seasonal signs combine observation with historical imagination. Weather and wildlife vary by region and year.
A reading of the poem
Qingming comes toward evening, bringing a fresh brilliance to the green hills. Willow catkins fly before the paulownia blooms. A quail's call recalls the old tale of a transformed vole, and a rainbow points to the horizon. Knowing the promise in wind and cloud, why fear that nourishing rain will be late?
Tang dynasty · Traditionally attributed to Yuan Zhen
咏廿四气诗·清明三月节
Poem source