let's talk about ghosts...
Friday August 28, 2015 (8/28/2015)
The Ghost Festival, also known as the Hungry Ghost Festival, or Yu Lan is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday celebrated by Chinese in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 15th night of the seventh lunar month (14th in southern China).
In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month (鬼月), in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm. Distinct from both the Qingming Festival (in Spring) and Chung Yeung Festival (in Autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, on Ghost Day, the deceased are believed to visit the living.
On the fifteenth day the realms of Heaven and Hell and the realm of the living are open and both Taoists and Buddhists would perform rituals to transmute and absolve the sufferings of the deceased. Intrinsic to the Ghost Month is veneration of the dead, where traditionally the filial piety of descendants extends to their ancestors even after their deaths.
Activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors. Elaborate meals (often vegetarian meals) would be served with empty seats for each of the deceased in the family treating the deceased as if they are still living. Ancestor worship is what distinguishes Qingming Festival from Ghost Festival because the latter includes paying respects to all deceased, including the same and younger generations, while the former only includes older generations. Other festivities may include, buying and releasing miniature paper boats and lanterns on water, which signifies giving directions to the lost ghosts and spirits of the ancestors and other deities.
As the ghosts and the suffering spirits will come out from the hell to visit their homes during the 7th lunar month (the ghost month), many things should be avoided during this month including the ghost day.
1. Don't stroll at night.
2. Don't swim. It is said that drowned evil ghosts might try to drown people in order to find victims for them to rebirth.
3. As the month is considered to be inauspicious, don't move to new a house, start new businesses or marry.
4. Don't hang clothes outside at night.
5. Do not pick up coins or money found on the street and if one does, never bring any home.
6. Do not step on or kick the offerings by the roadside. If one were to step on any offerings by accident, her or she should apologize aloud to ameliorate the situation
7. Do not wear red because ghosts are attracted to red.
8. Don't sing and whistle as these may attract ghosts.
9. Keep away from the walls as it is believed that ghosts like sticking to walls.
10. If someone is born during the ghost month, avoid celebrating birthday at night. It's better to celebrate during the daytime.
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