In the middle of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, it is the "ghost month" in the folklore of our country. It is said that every year on the first day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, the ghost door will be opened and hungry ghosts will be released, and the ghost door will not be closed until July 30. In order to make people and ghosts in the yin and yang realms safe, since ancient times, china has had the custom of setting up a pudu in July. Folk worship is held on the first, second, fifteenth, and last days of the Ghost Moon in July. There are also many taboos in the ghost moon, such as not wearing clothes with their own names, not patting others' shoulders, not whistling, children and the elderly who are infirm do not go out at night, and so on.
Generates a background
In ancient China, most people believed in the existence of ghosts and gods.
Legend has it that anyone who dies normally can be reincarnated. Those who have committed deep sins and died unexpectedly have become lone ghosts who "do not receive the big temple and leave no small temple" after death. These orphaned souls who are waiting to be fed wander the world. Some evil spirits will also take advantage of the opportunity to harass the living people in the world, causing people to be killed by dangerous accidents. Therefore, people who die unexpectedly during this time of year are often attached as "captured by ghosts".
It is believed that holding a "Purdue" ceremony for these ghosts will on the one hand free them from the suffering of hell as soon as possible, and on the other hand, they hope that they will no longer harass the living people of the world. Therefore, in addition to performing the "Pudu" ceremony every July, more paper is burned on the side of the road to spread the blessings. Later, it evolved into the custom of "setting off lights" and "honoring brothers".
Because such a pudu contains the meaning of praying for peace, in addition to worshiping the "good brothers" of all parties with rich sacrifices on the 15th of July, the people also invite drama classes to perform performances to reward the gods, and feast on guests with flowing water, which is very expensive. Nowadays, it advocates conservation and improvement of folklore, and although there are still Purdue activities, they are much more streamlined.
It will form a cultural custom that is inappropriate for the seventh month of the lunar calendar, because in previous years, July was a series of days of natural and man-made disasters, which is easy to make people fearful of this time, and in today's society, many taboos have gradually become unable to withstand the test of the times, but some are still things that science still cannot explain.
Ritual activities
Open the door
The first day of the ghost month, the first day of July, is the day when the private house "opens the door" and needs to be worshipped. On this day, the ghost door is closed, and the ghosts come to the mortal world, so it should be a summer vacation. There are large and small sacrifices in worship. The main festival is to make a hearty dish, and the small festival is to simply sell some fruit biscuits. Anyway, it's a tribute. Let's tell the truth, the full name of respect is the meaning of reverence, mainly not respect, but fear. The reason why we are afraid is because the ghosts and gods have superpowers.
Moreover, the time of the ghost is the opposite of that of the person. People are in the light, ghosts are in the dark. It can see people, but people can't see it. It's a bit of a forced feeling. Otherwise, the well water does not violate the river water, why should the ghost god be invited to eat for no reason? As the saying goes, take people with short hands, eat people with soft mouths. Although the words of such a worship are pronounced as "food", the implication is: If you eat these things, you will have less trouble with me. If you are renting someone else's private house, according to the reason, the official does not repair the gate, and the guest does not repair the shop, there is no need to worship.
Open the Gate of Heaven
The second day of the Ghost Moon, the second day of the first month of July, is the day when public places "open the door". Businesses, yamen and other units worship one day later than private houses. The purpose of the worship is to make this month pass safely, and there are no other supernatural events. The driver still has to put incense in front of the sign to pray, I am still very interested in life, do not joke with me during the drive, do not pull me to do "alternation".
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The fifteenth day of the Ghost Moon, the fifteenth day of July, is the Middle Yuan Festival. It is logical that ancestors should be worshipped. This is less teleological. Ancestors are definitely meant to be sacrificed. Our ancestors had tragic things, or other difficulties, such as massacres by the Japanese army, wars, plagues, famines. Our ancestors were in danger, how strong their will to survive was, and then we were there.
If they, like some people now suffer a little, they are going to die and live all day long, there is no such thing as us. So we should be grateful, and we must be strong enough to create the future and endure pain. The steps of my family's sacrifice are: to report their own name, to report the names and titles of their ancestors, to offer a feast sacrifice, toss a coin to confirm that the ancestors have come, to report meritorious deeds, to look forward to the vision of the coming year, to toast to confirm the ancestors' enjoyment, to burn paper money, and to send them away. The family will buy some delicious food every time they come to this festival, but crabs cannot be sacrificed, saying that they will scratch the faces of ancestors.
On this dark night (early morning and late night), the ghosts and gods gather, and the yin qi is the most abundant. By the same token, the next day, July 16, a public offering was held.
Purdue Festival
The Ghost Moon has a Purdue Festival, and each family is divided according to the private house area, and according to the day of sacrifice handed down by the predecessors, a feast is set up for Pudu sentient beings. Volume 15 of the Golden Gate Chronicle of the Daoguang Dynasty says: "From the beginning of the Seventh Month Shuo (the first day of the first month), all the monks of each society set up a temple, and made it the Oban Society, commonly known as Pudu, to sacrifice the masterless ghost. There are other private sacrifices in each family. "There is no longer a public sacrifice. While every household is doing private sacrifices, it is also sharing the obligations of public sacrifices. This time the sacrifice was entirely out of goodwill.
Because he became a ghost path, it was because he had committed evil thoughts in his previous life, and in this life he was punished unbearably in the ghost path, and the sword and the mountain were burned to atone for his sins. There are also those who have become hungry ghosts, whose throats are as narrow as needles, and who cannot eat or drink in a lifetime. There are also lonely ghosts, and there is no one to sacrifice in the middle of the Yuan Festival, and they are lonely and desolate. Therefore, we who have to be humane cannot only think about our own blocks, but also need to dedicate love. If so, the good way will not perish, and it can also be inspired by its genus, persuade it to be good, and transcend the sea of suffering as soon as possible. So, it's not simply about eating and drinking.
Close the door
The last day of the Ghost Moon, the day before the first day of The First Day of August, is called the "Closing Gate". This day is the day when the ghosts have finished their holidays and returned to hell. We are to start and end well, and on this day, we will also sacrifice for the rest of the day to keep peace. If there is a "open gate" sacrifice in that year, it is impossible not to sacrifice on this day. If there had been no "open gate" in that year, there would be no sacrifice on this day. China's festival is so interesting, the atmosphere is magnificent, I don't know if there will be public security pressure in the world on the day of the opening of the gate, and whether the government will also have the problem of traffic load on the day of closing the gate.
Ghost Moon Taboo
1, the name do not call directly: do not wear clothes embroidered with their own name at night, so as not to be possessed by the Yuan God, in addition, it is best to avoid calling other people's names with surnames, otherwise once the good brother hears it, he will take the opportunity to take away his three souls and six spirits, and if you hear someone shouting his name, do not turn back or respond immediately.
2, do not pat the shoulder: from a spiritual point of view, there are three fires on the body, respectively on the head and two shoulders, so it is best not to casually pat the head and shoulders of others during the ghost moon, so as not to extinguish the fire on his body, so that good brothers can take advantage of it.
When eating, you should not insert chopsticks on the rice bowl, its shape is like incense inserted on the incense burner, which will attract good brothers to share food with you;
3, do not whistle, beware of good brothers like you;
As you pass by the cemetery, keep saying," "I'm sorry, I'm disturbed!" And keep it solemn and not whistle to show respect for good brothers.
4, do not go to the dangerous waters to play in the water, the legend of the "water ghost" will find someone to replace the dead ghost, in order to reincarnate;
5. Do not steal the sacrifices of worship, and compete with ghosts for food, for fear of bad luck;
6. Do not hang wind chimes at the head of the bed, because the wind chimes will attract shade; I also don't play disc fairy. Don't plant banyan trees that are easy to get stuck in front of the door, and don't hang wind chimes in the house, don't play with the disk immortals, and don't go to the yin temple, which can reduce the possibility of the yin spirit's upper body.
7, at night, less to the wilderness or remote places, people with light characters are afraid of bumping into good brothers;
8, the change and red packets on the ground, do not pick up randomly; Don't pick up the money on the side of the road, because it may be good brothers, or it will be used for marriage.
9. Passing through the funeral place, there must be no disrespectful thoughts or words in the mouth and heart;
10. Avoid stepping on the paper or burning the paper;
11, do not rest against the wall: do not mess with the wall, because good brothers usually like to attach to the wall to rest, this move is easy to attract ghosts.
12, put away the clothes to prevent ghost "borrowing": at night to sleep or before dark, to take back the clothes that are exposed outside, so as not to be borrowed by the ghost to wear.
13, do not mess with the photo: it is best not to take random photos when traveling at night, otherwise the good brothers will take photos with you in the mirror, and the flashlight should not be randomly photographed on the tree, so as not to alarm the good brothers who like to attach to the treetops.
Precautions
The ghost moon is the month with the heaviest yin qi. According to the rumor of catching "alternating" (that is, replacing the dead ghost), children, the elderly and other weak or sensitive physiques should not go out at night to avoid being invaded by yin qi. In addition, it is best not to go into the water, especially in the sea. In short, don't do something that is easy to hang up. Don't play supernatural games like "Disc Fairy". Especially on the night of July 15, when it is extremely cloudy.
Many taboos, the family is too busy to prepare. In fact, as long as it does not affect the normal life and rest, it is better to believe that it has no credibility.
For many people, whether they have a spiritual experience or not, they can at least seek peace of mind. Some people are accustomed to carrying around with them to avoid evil spirits, such as carrying amulets, Buddha beads, or coarse salt, glutinous rice and other avoidance objects; Crosses or ores with special energy, etc.