中元节 Hungry Ghost Festival

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Yesterday evening I smelled smoke coming in my living room window. Went to take a look, wondering if the building was on fire. Instead it was some elderly Chinese burning fake paper money and flammable effigies of desirable consumer goods. Could not see the details since I live on the 4th floor.

 

Today as I walked to the wet market, I saw signs of last night on a nearby street. Flowers plus ashes. Didn't notice any food. (Snapshot attached below.) Didn't really know what the occasion was, but the guy from whom I buy eggs 土鸡蛋 at the market is friendly and his sister operates a stall selling ceremonial/religious goods next door.

 

Asked him what was the occasion and he said it was 中元节 zhongyuan jie, adding that it was mainly observed by old folks in these parts. I had not known about it before, but have seen similar observances at other times of year, mainly Tomb Sweeping Day 清明节。

 

Anyone else notice it near where you live?

 

 

Looked up a little about it:

• http://www.chinahighlights.com/festivals/hungry-ghost-festival.htm
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_Festival 

In Chinese culture, 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 Double Ninth Festival (in autumn) in which living descendants pay homage to their deceased ancestors, during Ghost Festival, the deceased are believed to visit the living.

 

(Wikipedia quote)

[skylee]

Over here we call it 盂蘭節, aka 鬼節. When I was a kid, we used to do that burning ceremony to feed the hungry ghosts hanging around in the seventh lunar month when the door of the hell is open.

This is very different from 清明節.

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Skylee -- In Hong Kong does it include setting out some fruit or other food?

[skylee]

Yes. Fruit, tofu, wine, burning of fake money. But that was when I was a child. I am not sure what people do now. But I smelled burning on the street today, so there must still be some people doing it.

[ChTTay]

I saw some old folks burning money near Lama Temple in Beijing. I did wonder what the occasion was!

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I bet that's what it was.

[Mixia]

Our Taiwanese teachers told us that they would even put water, towels and toothbrushes out so that the ghosts could wash. The ghost are considered to be the ancestors no one cares about because either their family died or don't care.