XI'AN, April 4 (Xinhua) -- More than 10,000 people from home and abroad attended an elaborate ceremony on Thursday to pay homage to Huangdi, or the Yellow Emperor, who is considered as the founder of the Chinese civilization and ancestor of all Chinese people.
This year's gathering at the emperor's mausoleum in a county near Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, falls on the Tomb-Sweeping Day, a traditional festival when Chinese mourn their deceased family members.
At the annual ceremony, a drum struck 34 times, once for each provincial-level regions, including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. A bell struck nine times, symbolizing Chinese people's highest honor for the Yellow Emperor.
A 10-minute long memorial dance was performed in front of the emperor's tomb in a solemn atmosphere.
Yok Mu-ming, chairman of the New Party in Taiwan, present at the ceremony with a group of Taiwan youths, wrote in a poem for the ceremony saying that people across the Taiwan Strait should always remember that they share a common root.
Among the crowds, hundreds of overseas Chinese from all over the world also paid tribute to the Yellow Emperor.
"I was touched by the oration read at the ceremony. It taught us to honor our tradition of hard working, tolerance, honesty, and so on, as well as adjusting to the new era as descendants of the Yellow Emperor," said Tin Shingchao, president of Wu Yup Overseas Association.
This year's oration not only summarized the 5,000-year long Chinese history, but also expressed people's determination to pursue peace and reform and opening-up, and to work together with compatriots from across the Strait for China's dream of rejuvenation.
The catchword "Chinese dream" has encouraged individual Chinese people from all walks of life to contribute to the national goal.
Snails that are as fat as geese
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