The ceremony to bury the ashes of the deceased "Father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping is held at a mausoleum in Changsha, Hunan Province, on November 15. Photo: Chinanews.com

Six months after "Father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping died of illness in May, a ceremony to bury his ashes was held at a mausoleum in Changsha, Central China's Hunan Province, on Monday, setting off a fresh wave of netizens paying homage to the pioneer of the research and development of hybrid rice in China. 

Escorted by a ceremonial team from the armed force, Yuan's ashes were placed at Tangren Wanshouyuan mausoleum with the witness of his family members, students, researchers and academicians. 

Ears of rice that surrounded the tomb and two bowls of rice placed on the tomb lid were a highlight of the ceremony. The bowls of rice were engraved with the phrase "May all have enough to eat." 

The sentence "People are like seeds, to be a good seed" that Yuan used to say was also engraved on a huge stone behind his portrait and tomb. 

A video circulated online showed a national flag covering Yuan's cinerary casket before ashes were laid to rest in the tomb. 

Yuan died in Changsha on May 22 at the age of 91. He was the pioneer of the research and development of hybrid rice in China and the first scientist in the world to successfully utilize the heterosis of rice.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs expressed condolences over Yuan's death in May, saying "Yuan's death was a great loss for China on issues related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers." 

The ceremony to bury the ashes of the deceased "Father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping is held at a mausoleum in Changsha, Hunan Province, on November 15. Photo: Chinanews.com

The ceremony grabbed national headlines and swept across Chinese social media with netizens flocking online to pay respect to Yuan. At least three trendy topics on Sina Weibo were related to the ceremony. Each one has more than 80 million views as of press time.

"Farewell Papa Yuan, I will be a good seed!" a Sina Weibo user wrote. Yuan was hailed by netizens as "a great man of our time," "the pride of the republic, the backbone of the nation and a role model for every descendant of Chinese people!"

The news about Yuan's death was a major story on Chinese social media in May. Residents from Changsha and other places lined up to offer flowers outside the funeral home in Changsha to bid farewell to Yuan.

As for why it has taken six months to place ashes of Yuan after his death, an assistant of Yuan surnamed Yang told the Beijing News that the government attached great importance to the final resting place of the academician. East China's Jiangxi Province, Yuan's native place, had also expressed willingness to welcome Yuan's ashes but after enough consideration, the Tangren Wanshouyuan mausoleum was eventually chosen.

Global Times