Hungry Ghost Festival .

EP
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The West has Halloween , we Chinese has Hungry Ghost Festival .
Today is the 14th of July in Lunar Chinese calendar . The Ghost Festival falls
on this day , and the seventh month in general is regarded as Ghost Month .
Base on Buddhist legend story , on this night the door of hell will open ,
hungry ghosts and spirits are free to roam between earth and realm , seeking
foods and entrainments .
To make offerings to the spirits so that they may not cause troubles to
the living , activities during the month would include preparing ritualistic food offerings ,
burning incense and burning joss paper, a papier – mache form of material items
such as clothes, gold and other fine goods for the visiting spirits of the ancestors.
In the middle of each street stood an altar of incense with fresh fruit and sacrifices
displayed on it.

Live performances ( temple fairs ) would be held and everyone was invited to attend,
Chinese Operas , dramas will be present during the show to entertain the ghosts .
Buddhist alike would hold ceremonies to relieve ghosts from suffering, many of them
holding ceremonies in the afternoon or at night .

Some taboos in this festival : avoid going out at night , moving hosue , wedding ,
swimming , give birth , wearing color in black etc .


Some people said lunar July should be a romantic month since the Chinese Valentine’s Day
is also in lunar July . However I think it is scary more that romantic . And seems the
Chinese Ghost Festival is more creepy than Halloween .