Tens of millions of people in China marked the annual 'Tomb Sweeping Festival' this weekend by travelling home to their ancestral villages. Families across the country descended on graveyards to clean their tombs of the deceased and honour their loved ones, burning fake paper money and leaving their favourite food and drink to ensure they are not poor or hungry in the afterlife. As part of the Qingming Festival – which means 'pure brightness' – China celebrates the coming spring and the beauty of nature, says People’s Daily Online. A grand and colourful ceremony was held in honour of the 'Yellow Emperor' Huangdi in Huangling County, Shaanxi Province . Huangdi is considered the ancestor of the Qingming Festival which sees the Chinese mark the start of spring with outdoor celebrations . Lines of dancers take to the stage as part of the celebration, which was watched by thousands of people during the public holiday . Around 1.3 billion Chinese people marked the Qingming Festival, a three-day holiday in China, by watching parades and travelling home . Traditional Chinese dancers wear intricate gowns as they swirl and dance in the sunshine during the celebrations in the city of Huangi . An actor dressed as a soldier takes a break from the celebration to check his phone . In Shaanxi Province, a huge outdoor celebration was held as part of the Qingming Festival and in honour of the 'Yellow Emperor' Huang Di, considered the founding father of the Chinese nation. A bell was rung from the top of the city's temple, while the drums were struck 34 times, one for each of China's provinces including Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan. The festival falls in the first week of April every year, and is one of the 24 Chinese solar terms - the date from which temperatures rise, rainfall increases and marks an important time for the land to be prepared for the sowing of seeds. Hundreds of visitors filmed the celebrations on their smart phones, as a colourful inflatable dragon dances in the sky. It is said that the Yellow Emperor Huang Di did not die, but instead ascended into heaven on the back of a dragon - making the creature a Chinese symbol . Participants carry platters of fruit as part of the ceremony in the central China, which had hundreds of dancers and performers . Huangdi, the Yellow Emperor, is a legendary Chinese sovereign in the culture, a powerful symbol of the Qing dynasty that ruled 1644-1912 . A young performer casts a smile on a guard, as she fixed her hair during the Qingming festival celebrations . Dancers make offerings to the water in a service at the Duijang Dam for Qingming - praying for favourable weather for their crops . Opinion on the origins of the festival differ, but it can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty which ruled China between 618 and 907. While millions of Chinese people made the trip to their ancestral villages, opportunistic traders took advantage of some people's inability to make the visit - advertising 'tomb sweeping packages' which include weeping, praying and cleaning. Depending on the package, costing between 100 yuan and 1,300 yuan, the buyer receives a commemorative photo of the occasion. A record-breaking 36.5 million passenger trips were made over the weekend and public holiday - up 5.8 per cent on last year and an all-time high. The rise is partially due to the construction of new railways in recent years, particularly high-speed railway, say commentators. A couple pray as they burn paper money during Qingming. The traditional practice is to ensure the dead are comfortable in the afterlife . A puff of smoke floats above the tomb as a woman burns paper money for her ancestor, while cleaning around the grave in Shanghai . More than a billion Chinese people went back to their ancestral villages to visit and tidy the graves of their ancestors for the public holiday . Primary school students in Red Army uniforms clean tombs at a Martyrs' Cemetery ahead of the Qingming Festival in Yecheng, Xinjang . Survivors and victims of the Nanjing Massacre carry flowers and mourn the deceased as part of 'Tomb-Sweeping Day' in China . The young children stand to attention and pay their respects to the deceased in the Martyrs' Cemetery in Yecheng .
Millions of Chinese enjoy the Qingming Festival - 'Pure Brightness Festival' - to celebrate the coming spring .
Last day of festival sees Chinese families visit their ancestors' graves to clean, burn paper money and pray .
Record number of journeys made by Chinese over the three-day public holiday, which falls in April every year .