The Ghost Festival 中元节

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, in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower realm. This year the Ghost Month starts on 20 August and the Ghost Day falls on 3 September. The festival is said to have started in the Liang Dynasty (502-557).

The Ghost Month is also known as the Ghost Festival, Hungry Ghost Festival, Zhongyuan Festival, Yu Lan Pen festival, and a number of other names.

During the Qingming Festival the living descendants pay homage to their ancestors and on Ghost Festival, the deceased visit the living.

It is believed that during this time, the souls of the unborn and that of departed ancestors and friends are released from Purgatory to wander the earth for 30 days. The souls of the dead ignored by relatives may do acts of mischief, so steps must be taken to appease the spirits before they go on a rampage. Hell money, paper offerings and joss sticks are burnt to see to their material needs; food is offered so that the souls do not go hungry and thus less likely to wreck havoc.

According to the Ullambana Sutra, the monk Mu Lian had great magic power. His mother fell into the path of hungry ghosts. All food that entered her month would turn into strong flames which put her in great pain. Mu Lian had no idea on how to save his mother, so he asked Buddha for help. Buddha told him the Yu Lan Pen canon and asked him to save his mother on the 15th day of the 7th lunar month with the help of Yu Lan Pen.

The festival is taken seriously by Chinese all over the world. The reason why the Chinese observe this festival is to remember their dead family members and pay tribute to them. They also feel that offering food to the deceased appeases them and wards off bad luck. In Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, it is a common sight to see entertaining Chinese Opera shows performed on outdoor stages in many neighbourhoods. These events are always held at night. Such entertainment would please those wandering ghosts that come to earth once a year.

And now you should know why Chinese believe the seventh lunar month is a bad month.

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在华人的传统中，农历七月十五是‘鬼日’，而七月就是一般所谓的‘鬼月’。在这个月里，鬼与魂，包括那些过世的祖先们，会从下界跑出来。今年的‘鬼月’由阳历8月20日开始，而‘鬼日’在9月3日。据说这个节日在梁代（502-557）就开始了。

鬼月亦叫‘鬼节’，‘饿鬼节’，‘中元节’，‘盂兰盆节’，和其他一些名字。

清明节是活着的亲人向祖先祭拜的日子，而‘鬼节’是先人访问活人的日子。

一般相信，在这30天里，还没出世的灵魂、过世的祖先与他们的朋友会从下界被释放出来游荡。被亲友忽视的游魂会对他们有恶作剧的行为；所以在还没有造成破坏之前，应该做些令他们高兴的事情。要烧冥纸、香等来满足他们的物质需求；提供食物，这样他们才不会饥饿，他们也就不大可能制造大破坏。

据佛经中的《盂兰盆经》记载:“有目莲僧者，法力宏大。其母堕落饿鬼道中，食物入口，即化为烈焰，饥苦太甚。目莲无法解救母厄，于是求教于佛，为说盂兰盆经，教于七月十五日作盂兰盆以救其母。”

世界各地的华人都认真对待这个节日。华人之所以会庆祝这个节日，是要怀念先人，祭拜他们。他们觉得为死者提供食物会满足他们，驱走厄运。在香港、马来西亚与新加坡，在户外舞台上表演戏剧来娱乐死者是常见的。这些活动通常在夜间举行。这些娱乐会令一年到阳间来一次的游魂高兴。

现在你应该了解为什么华人认为七月是一个不祥之月。