Ghost Festival: Burning Paper To Remember The Dead

On the night of the 15th day of the seventh lunar month every year, you will see many people burning paper on the roadside or other places, which brings you a strange atmosphere. This is actually an act of remembering the dead.

1. When is the Zhongyuan Festival?
   The Zhongyuan Festival, also known as the Ghost Festival and the Half of July, is a traditional festival on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month every year (in some areas, especially in South China, there is also a custom of celebrating the festival on the 14th day of the seventh lunar month). This day is regarded as the intersection of the Yin and Yang worlds in traditional Chinese culture. It is an important day for worshiping ancestors and transcending the souls of the dead. The Zhongyuan Festival in 2024 falls on August 18, Sunday, which is not a statutory holiday, but its influence among the people is still far-reaching.
2. What is the Zhongyuan Festival?
   The Zhongyuan Festival is one of the four traditional Chinese sacrificial festivals. Together with New Year’s Eve, Qingming Festival and Chongyang Festival, it constitutes an important node for the Chinese nation to worship their ancestors. It originated from the ancient worship of ancestors and belief in nature, and gradually integrated the religious elements of Taoism and Buddhism to form a unique cultural connotation. The Zhongyuan Festival is not only a day to worship ancestors and remember the dead, but also a time to pray for a good harvest, family peace, and social harmony.

III. Legends of Zhongyuan Festival

1. Mulian Saves His Mother
   Mulian Saves His Mother is one of the most well-known legends of Zhongyuan Festival. Mulian, whose secular name is Luobu, was punished to suffer in the Avici Hell for her evil deeds in her lifetime. After Mulian acquired supernatural powers, he learned about his mother’s situation and resolutely went to hell to rescue her. He asked for help from Tathagata Buddha, and finally saved his mother from the sea of ​​suffering and reincarnated as a dog in the royal city. After Mulian laid a forty-nine-day Taoist temple, his mother was able to ascend to heaven. This legend embodies the spirit of filial piety and compassion, and is also an important cultural foundation for worshiping ancestors and transcending the souls of the dead during Zhongyuan Festival.
2. Cai Mo Burns Paper
   Another legend related to Zhongyuan Festival is the story of Cai Mo burning paper. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, after Cai Lun invented papermaking, his brother Cai Mo’s business was bleak due to poor papermaking technology. Later, his wife Hui Niang came up with a clever plan. She pretended to be dead and resurrected, claiming that because Cai Mo burned paper for her, she was able to enjoy money in the underworld, thus saving her from the predicament. From then on, every July 15th, people would burn incense and paper for their ancestors to show their remembrance and filial piety.

IV. Customs of the Ghost Festival

1. Ancestor worship
   The most important custom of the Ghost Festival is to worship the ancestors. People will place offerings at home or in front of the ancestral tomb, such as three kinds of meat, three kinds of tea and five kinds of wine, etc. The head of the family will preside over the ceremony, burn three sticks of incense, kowtow and pray to the ancestors to bless the family with peace and prosperity of descendants. In some areas, there is also a custom of taking the souls of ancestors home and offering food every day until the end of July.
2. Release river lanterns
   Release river lanterns is also one of the important customs of the Ghost Festival. People make river lanterns such as lotus lanterns, light them and place them in rivers, lakes and seas, letting them float. Legend has it that this can help drowning ghosts and other lonely ghosts in the water to rest in peace. Putting lanterns on the river is not only a mourning for the deceased relatives, but also a blessing for the living people.
3. Burning paper money
   Burning paper money is an indispensable activity of the Zhongyuan Festival. People believe that paper money can represent money to be used in the underworld, so they will burn a lot of paper money for their ancestors and lonely ghosts. This custom reflects people’s remembrance of their ancestors and their compassion for the dead souls.
4. Grabbing the ghost
   Grabbing the ghost is a special temple fair activity, which is usually held after the Zhongyuan Festival. The host provides the offerings for the sacrifice to people to grab, which is called “grabbing the ghost”. This activity is said to scare away the ghosts who linger in the world and make them stop haunting.
5. Taboos of the Zhongyuan Festival
6. It is not suitable to get married
   The Zhongyuan Festival is considered to be a time when the yin energy is heavier, so it is not suitable to hold a wedding. People are worried that the newlyweds will be disturbed by the yin energy, affecting the happiness and auspiciousness of the marriage.
7. It is not suitable to go out at night
   On the night of the Zhongyuan Festival, people believe that the ghosts in the underworld are active frequently, so they avoid going out at night. In order to avoid unexpected events or being disturbed by ghosts.
8. Swimming is not suitable
   Water has the meaning of purification and represents Yin energy during the Ghost Festival, so swimming is not suitable. People are worried that ghosts from the underworld will take this opportunity to invade the human world and bring misfortune and disaster.
9. It is not suitable to turn on lights at night
   It is not suitable to light too many lights at night to avoid attracting ghosts. People believe that too many lights will destroy the atmosphere of sacrifice and attract unclean souls.
10. It is not suitable to cry alone at night
    Crying at night during the Ghost Festival is believed to attract ghosts and bring bad emotions to people. Therefore, people should maintain an optimistic attitude and avoid crying alone at night.
11. It is not suitable to pick fruits
    The Ghost Festival is a time when ghosts are floating around, and picking fruits may attract unclean souls. People are worried that the picked fruits will be possessed by ghosts or carry bad air.
12. It is not suitable to throw things around
    Throwing garbage or waste on the Ghost Festival is believed to attract evil spirits. Therefore, people should keep the environment clean and orderly and avoid throwing away garbage at will.
13. Do not ridicule ghosts and gods: Respect ghosts and gods, do not ridicule or ridicule, so as not to bring bad luck.

Respect tradition and understand taboos: The taboos of the Ghost Festival are not nonsense, but reflect people’s respect and respect for the dead. These taboos protect people’s spirit and emotions to a certain extent, and also promote people’s social harmony. When celebrating the Ghost Festival, respecting traditions and following taboos will not only help maintain the continuation of traditional culture, but also reflect our deep affection for our loved ones.