Every year, in the hottest month, we are accosted by the
smell of joss sticks, the remnants of paper ashes flying around the
pavement, greeted by lively getai (which literally means song stage) performers who sing their hearts out to old, funky tunes.
We realize then that it's
that eerie time of the year again! It's the Hungry Ghost Festival!
A short introduction to the Hungry Ghost Festival: an annual festival, which
takes place once every year during the middle of the seventh lunar
month. Exact dates vary from the 13th to the 15th,
though most Taoists and Singaporean Chinese in general ‘celebrate' the
event throughout the whole month.
There are equivalents all over the
world, with Obon in Japan and the Vietnamese version of Mother's Day, which also happens during the same period of time.
What most people don't know, however, under the morbid name of the Hungry Ghost
Festival, lies a very simple yet touching reason as to how this festival
came about.
Originating from ancient India but later adapting to
Chinese culture, the Hungry Ghost Festival was once known as the
Buddhist festival Ullambana, and its Taoist equivalent.
A monk's mother had been reborn into the Realm of Hungry Ghosts because
she had been greedy with the large amount of money the monk had left
her, resulting in her reincarnation into a thin-throated, fat-bellied
but forever hungry, ghost.
It was said that the monk had initially
instructed his mother to look after any Buddhist monks she met, yet
even though she did not follow her son's wishes, the kind monk sought
to ease his mother's unearthly suffering. After a few rounds of
reincarnation, his mother was finally reborn as a human, after the Monk
offered food to 500 other Buddhist monks.
Under the influence of Confucian beliefs, the offering became directed
more towards ancestors rather than to Buddhist monks. Hundreds of years on,
this moving act of filial piety has evolved into the Hungry Ghost
Festival that we see today.
Of course, there are very distinct differences between the Hungry
Ghost Festival of the past and now. It may surprise us all but the
seventh month was regarded as one of the happiest months on the
Buddhist calendar, instead of being remembered as the month when Chinese ghouls roam the
Earth in order to satiate their never ending hunger.
So where do the paper offerings, month-long song-and-dance, and other seemingly irrelevant customs come in?
Here in Singapore, the seventh month of the lunar calendar seems to
have culminated in a melting pot of sumptuous feasts for the dead and
elaborate a-go-go style getai
performances at HDB void decks.
Taoists, and Singaporean Chinese in
general, start their offerings on the first day of the seventh month,
when the gates of hell burst open for the homeless souls. On the 15th,
the Chinese families will typically offer a large amount of dishes to
their deceased ancestors, in hopes of pleasing the ghosts and obtaining
‘luck' for the family.
Other common practices also see the air fog up with
black smoke from the almost furious burning of joss sticks, 'hell
notes' and paper offerings ranging from houses to Rolls-Royce(s)
(chauffeur included!) in cylindrical drums.
A running joke
amongst Economics students is how the rate of inflation in the ghostly
realm is sky-high - a result of us kind Singaporeans burning millions
of dollars worth of hell notes to our otherworld counterparts.
A note
of caution: do not step on the ashes of
these offerings, or you may incur the wrath of the ghosts!
Alright, so how does the popular getai 'please' our wandering ghosts?
It was said that the unconventional getai was evolved from the traditional Chinese Opera or wayang, as a means of entertaining lost ghosts, who are looking for their families.
These metaphorical entertainment drive-ins for the ghosts used to see a
full house (of living people) coming to enjoy the hubbub with their
dead relatives. As you stand amongst the crowd of baby boomers,
you'll notice something odd: the front row is always empty.
No prizes for guessing who these seats are reserved for!
Lastly, ever wondered what common superstitions surround this unique
festival?
Aside from not stepping on burnt ashes, the older generation
doles out warnings on swimming during the 7th
month, for fear of evil specters drowning innocent victims in the pool.
Others include imploring children to return home early, in order to
prevent wandering spirits from possessing the unsuspecting children. So
when parents start to impose inexplicable curfews during the seventh
month, be sure you listen to them (for once)! Hooked
Images courtesy of gettsyburg.edu and tourismpenang.gov.my
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Written by Guest on 2008-07-17 15:00:21
im scared | Written by Guest on 2008-08-02 23:51:10
good
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