Chinanews, Zhenzhou, Apr. 19 – An ancestor worshipping ceremony was kicked off on Thursday when Chinese nationals gathered to pay respects to the ancestor Huangdi (Yellow Emperor) in Henan, the ancestor’s hometown province.The ceremony, held at the Xingshi Square in Xinzheng city, was organized by the Henan Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference(CPPCC), Zhenzhou municipal government, and Xinzheng city government.Participating in the ceremony were vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Xu Jialu; vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Zhang Siqing; Secretary of the CPC Henan Provincial Committee Xu Guangchun; Henan governor Li Chengyu; Chinese Kuomintang Honorary Chairman Lien Chan; and 20,000 Chinese people from around the world.The theme for this year’s worshipping ceremony is getting together to pay respects to our ancestor and achieving harmony. The ceremony consisted of nine steps: observing silence, firing guns, lighting incense sticks, paying a courtesy to the ancestor, reading eulogies, lighting sacred fire, singing odes, dancing performance, and harmony between heaven, earth and human beings.At 9：50 in the morning，Wang Wenchao, a member of the Standing Committee of Henan Provincial Party Committee and Secretary of Zhengzhou City Party Committee, declared the ceremony open, when a 21-gun salute was fired to mark the occasion.Huangdi, or Xuanyuan Huangdi, has been considered as the creator of the Chinese civilization and ancestor of the Chinese nation. A large number of historical accounts and unearthed relics demonstrate that he was born in Xinzheng city and established his empire there. Five thousand years ago, he led his people to live a prosperous life. Later, he united his kingdom with Yandi and set Xinzheng as the capital of the empire. He and his people created the Chinese characters. He taught his civilians how to weave clothes, make boats and the compass. He made the Chinese lunar calendar and wrote the book, Neijing, a book about the traditional Chinese medicine. All these laid a foundation for the prosperity of the Chinese civilization. Through the centuries since he was born on the third of March, descendents have held commemorative activities every year on this day to mark his contributions to China.