Tết Thanh Minh Prayer
Thanh Minh solar term, usually around April 4th or 5th each year
Meaning
Thanh Minh (literally "clear and bright") is one of the 24 solar terms, usually falling in early April. It is the occasion when descendants tend the graves — visiting, cleaning, and repairing ancestral burial sites — expressing filial reverence and remembering the departed.
Offering preparation
Incense, candles, fruit, wine, betel and areca, votive paper. Tools for clearing weeds. A small offering tray may be brought to the gravesite.
Content
Namo Amitābha Buddha! (3 times)
Today is the Thanh Minh solar term, the .......... day of April, year .......... (Gregorian).
The descendants: ..........................................
On this Thanh Minh occasion, the descendants come to visit and tend the graves of the ancestors.
We respectfully bow to the ancestors of both paternal and maternal sides and to all the spirits.
We respectfully present offerings of incense and flowers, inviting the ancestors to come and partake.
The descendants express gratitude for the kindness of birth and nurture given by ancestors across many generations.
We humbly ask the ancestors to bless the descendants:
With progress in study and success in career.
With family peace and abundant health.
We offer modest gifts with sincere hearts; we respectfully present them.
Namo Amitābha Buddha! (3 times)