Month of the Hungry Ghost Festival
It is the time of the year. Establishments in Sibu as in most towns operating at night are finding their businesses affected. One guy called it a slow down.
Some believe late nights out are a big no-no during this season. It is believed spirits roam the earth. According to local superstitions there are certain don’ts at this time.
It officially started last Monday. The gates of Hell are now wide-open and will remain open for the whole lunar month. So some Chinese communities offer peace-offerings to them to avert any mishaps.
At the same time, the general consensus is for folks to avoid unwarranted attention from them. Even weddings and birthdays are not celebrated during this time. Trees are believed to harbour spirits so the Chinese avoid chopping down trees to avoid offending them.
Some believe these lost spirits like to glide along walls, hide in dark, damp places and for some single female spirits, flowers are their favourite hangouts.
Every year, the Chinese community will flood the temples to observe the festival and bring along offerings of food and Hell notes as offerings. For this year, an auspicious day is on the 14th day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar which falls on Aug 26 this year.
This pic courtesy of www.religionfacts.com
They take to the streets and line up dishes such as chicken, roast duck, rice, vegetables, bean curd, sweets, fruits and biscuits in front of their house, along with lighted joss sticks and candles.
These will be burnt with Hell notes for the spirits who visit such households.
Children and babies should be kept indoors as they have the ability to see these spirits, and can fall sick when they come in contact with these ‘visitors’.
Spirits are terrified of lightning and thunder. They enter your house during such occasions and when they bump into you, the victim will fall sick.
Pic courtesy of siamandaman.com
Poh tor is part of the Chinese culture. It is a grand ceremony held for visitors from the other world, which includes opera performances and the burning of offerings.
Traditionally it is the time of the year, when I am most active. I pray this year my senses will not be so acute and I will avoid a confrontation or bump into them.
when is it?
it is one month long but aug 26th is a big day
So, this lasts for a month. Did you know I was born in the month of July which was in that year month of the ghost? So hor, my granddad asked my mum not to register me until a month after. Duh?? Now you see why I am such a confused person?
so u c it is important to the older generation “)
so do u talk to them? chit chat a bit ok mah rite onot? make friends summore so next time when u go over u have lots of friends so ur next life mah easier lor!
i dont chit chat
oo. thanks for all the facts and advice.
Cheers
I was just gonna wish you good luck.
Watever yr comment, i am so glad u r back
This one is like a scene out of the TV series, ‘Believe it or not?’. We had to do this Just to keep the peace and we never had any hysterics ever since…
Everyone should read this link provided by lianchye
No time to blog about this.. but there is more than meets the eye during this time..
wonderful thing is i have been free of any encounters so far