The seventh month in the lunar calendar is also known as the Hungry Ghost month. It was said that on the first day of the hungry ghost month, the ‘hell gate’ will open for the ghost (normally we call them ‘good brothers’) to travel to the human world. These ‘good brothers’ will roam around for food and offerings till the end of the month and return to the netherworld.

Believer believed that during the Hungry Ghost month, there are certain do’s and don’ts to follow closely in order not to ‘offend’ the ‘good brothers’. Eg. offering of food, burning of hell money and paper artefact. Life stage performance like Chinese opera, puppets show and getai will also be held during the Hungry Ghost month to entertain the “good brothers”

Some examples of activities to be avoided during the Hungry Ghost month:

  • Moving house

Some believed that moving house during this month might unintentionally invite the ghost to move into the new house with them.

  • Inviting of Deity and Ancestor

Similar to moving house, some believed that they might unintentionally invite the ghost instead of the Deity or their ancestor.

  • Swimming

Some believed that there might be ‘water ghost’ in the pool, waiting for a chance to drown those ‘unlucky’ swimmers in order to get a replacement for themselves. The drown person will replace the ‘water ghost’ duty to continue waiting for another ‘unlucky’ swimmers, while the ‘water ghost’ will get a chance to reincarnate.

  • Getting married

It was said that if you intend to get marry during the Hungry Ghost month, you must also not forget to invite the ‘good brothers’ to attend the wedding. If the ‘good brothers’ are not invited, they may create havoc to the new couple. This may lead to a lot of family problems and may cause the new couple to divorce within a short period of time after marriage. Therefore, most couple will avoid getting married during the Hungry Ghost month.

  • Do not step on the offerings

As the offerings are for the ghost to enjoy, if you accidentally step on it, you will anger them and they might take revenge by disturbing you.

Last but not least, try not to stay out late if you feel that you are down in your luck. This is to avoid unnecessary trouble that may happen to you.

GOOD LUCK!

Video- Hungry Ghost Month Ritual at Chinatown Complex

七月鬼节

农历七月也被称为七月鬼节。据说在农历七月初一，“鬼门关”将打开让幽灵（一般我们称他们为“好兄弟”）来到阳间。这些”好兄弟”会在阳间逗留一个月才会回到阴间。这段时间它们尽情享受着阳间的人供奉给它们的食物和烧给它们的纸札物品，纸钱等等。

信徒认为，在鬼节期间，为了不冒犯“好兄弟”，他们必须注意一些事情。如供奉食物，焚烧纸札物品，纸钱。中国戏曲，木偶戏和歌台等表演也会在鬼节举办以招待“好兄弟”。

以下是一些在鬼节期间大家会尽量避免的活动例子：

 – 搬家

有些人认为在鬼节搬家可能会无意中邀请幽灵与他们一起搬进新房子。

 – 安奉神祇/祖先

与搬家相似，有些人认为他们可能会无意中邀请了鬼魂而不是神灵或他们的祖先。

 – 游泳

有些人认为池中可能有“水鬼”等待着‘运气不佳’的人，并让他们有机会淹死以做它的替死鬼，而后自己就可以投胎转世。

– 结婚

据说，如果在鬼节里结婚，你也不要忘记邀请“好兄弟”参加婚礼。如果没有邀请“好兄弟”，它们可能会给这对新人带来麻烦。这可能会导致一些家庭问题，也可能导致新婚夫妇在婚后短时间内离婚。因此，情侣会避免在鬼节期间结婚。

 – 不准踩到祭品

由于这些祭品是为了让鬼魂享用，如果你不小心踩到它，也等于冒犯了鬼魂。它们可能会因次而骚扰你带给你麻烦。

最后,如果你觉得自己运气不好，尽量不要太迟回家。这是为了避免可能发生的不必要的麻烦。

祝大家好运！