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Ancestor veneration in China
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Ancestral veneration in Chinese culture (Chinese: 敬祖; pinyin: jìngzǔ) is the practice of living family members who try to provide a deceased family member with continuous happiness and well-being in the afterlife. It is a way of continuing to show respect toward them, and it reinforces the unity of family and lineage. Showing respect to ancestors is an ideology deeply rooted in Chinese society. It is based on the idea of filial piety (孝, xiào) put forth by Confucius. Filial piety is the concept of remaining loyal to parents as their child. It is believed that despite the death of a loved one, the original relationship remains intact, and that the deceased possess more spiritual power than they did during life. In a sense, the ancestors became thought of as deities who had the ability to interact and have an effect on the lives of those still living.

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The core belief of ancestor veneration is that there is a continued existence after death. It is thought that the soul of a deceased person is made up of yin and yang components called hun and po. The yin component, po (魄), is associated with the grave, and the yang component, hun (魂), is associated with ancestral tablets . According to this belief, at death the components split into three different souls; the po goes with the body to the grave, one to judgment, and the hun resides in an ancestral tablet. The hun and po are not immortal and need to be nourished; it is the offerings that feed them. Eventually both the hun and po go to the underworld, although the hun goes to heaven first. Unlike in western usages of the term, underworld has no negative connotation.

The state of ancestor veneration in modern day China is reported to be declining in areas that were more heavily affected by the hostility towards religion under the Communist regime. However, in rural areas of China, as well as Taiwan, ancestor worship and its practices can still be commonly found.

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Confucianism placed importance on understanding and properly adhering to the five relationships:

Ruler and subjects

Father and son

Husband and wife

Elder brother and younger brother

Elder friends and junior friends

From the time of Confucius until the 20th century the death of a parent would commonly mean a three-year mourning period for their child. The three-year length symbolizes the first three years in a child's life when they are being carried and loved unconditionally by their parents. These mourning practices would include wearing sackcloth, leaving hair unkempt, eating a restricted diet of congee two times a day, living in a mourning shack placed beside the house, and moaning in pain at certain intervals of the day. It is said that after the death of Confucius his followers engaged in this three-year mourning period to symbolize their commitment to his teachings.

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