Hungry Ghosts Festival

What Is Hungry Ghosts Festival?

The Hungry Ghosts Festival is a significant annual observance across various East and Southeast Asian cultures. It is primarily rooted in Buddhist and Taoist traditions and centres on the belief that during the seventh lunar month, the gates of the underworld open, allowing spirits to visit the earthly realm. During this period, families engage in practices to honour their ancestors and provide offerings to alleviate the suffering of any wandering or unattached spirits, often referred to as “hungry ghosts”.

The festival serves as a period for individuals to express filial piety and compassion towards the deceased. While the general concept is widespread, its specific name, timing, and customs can vary by region. In Cambodia, for instance, a conceptually similar, yet distinct, ancestral veneration festival known as Pchum Ben is observed, which shares core elements of ancestor remembrance but adheres to a different lunar calendar and has unique national traditions.

History and Origins of Hungry Ghosts Festival

The origins of the Hungry Ghosts Festival are a synthesis of ancient folk beliefs, Taoist practices, and Buddhist narratives. In Taoism, the seventh lunar month is associated with the ‘Ghost Month’ (Guǐ Yuè), with its peak on the 15th day, known as the Zhongyuan Festival. This day is traditionally when the Earth Official inspects human deeds and records sins, and offerings are made to absolve the deceased.

Buddhism contributes the Yu Lan Pen Sutra, which tells the story of Mulian (Maudgalyayana), a disciple of Buddha, who uses his supernatural powers to see his deceased mother suffering in the realm of hungry ghosts. Buddha advises him to make offerings to the Sangha (monastic community) on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month. This act of generosity subsequently released his mother from suffering. This narrative underscores the importance of offerings and meritorious deeds for the salvation of the deceased. Over centuries, these traditions merged, leading to the widespread observance of a festival dedicated to remembering and assisting ancestors and other spirits.

How Hungry Ghosts Festival Is Celebrated

The Hungry Ghosts Festival is observed with a variety of customs designed to show respect to ancestors and placate wandering spirits. These traditions commonly include family gatherings, specific food preparations, and public rituals. The overarching aim is to ensure the well-being of the deceased and to prevent any potential misfortune from discontented spirits.

Common practices involve making extensive food offerings, burning incense, and sending ‘hell money’ (joss paper currency) and paper effigies of goods into the afterlife through fire. Large outdoor altars are often set up in communities, laden with food and other provisions. Performances such as Chinese opera or puppet shows are also organised for the entertainment of both the living and the unseen. Floating paper lanterns on water is another tradition, believed to guide lost spirits to the land of the living to partake in the offerings, and then back to the underworld.

Cambodian Observance: Pchum Ben

In Cambodia, a significant ancestral festival known as Pchum Ben shares conceptual similarities with the broader Hungry Ghosts Festival, though it has distinct timing and traditions. Pchum Ben, meaning “gathering of ancestors”, is a 15-day observance culminating on the 15th day of the tenth month of the Khmer lunar calendar. This period is dedicated to honouring up to seven generations of ancestors.

During Pchum Ben, Cambodian families visit various pagodas (Buddhist temples) to make food offerings, especially ‘Bay Ben’ (small balls of glutinous rice mixed with sesame seeds), to monks. It is believed that during this time, the gates of hell open, allowing deceased relatives, particularly those suffering as hungry ghosts, to return to earth. These spirits are thought to visit seven different pagodas, and if their descendants fail to offer food to the monks, the ancestors will go hungry, bringing bad fortune upon the family. The festival is a public holiday in Cambodia, emphasising family reunion, respect for elders, and community merit-making through donations to pagodas.

When Is Hungry Ghosts Festival?

The traditional Hungry Ghosts Festival is observed on the 15th night of the seventh month in the East Asian lunar calendar. Because the lunar calendar is not fixed relative to the Gregorian calendar, the festival’s date varies each year, typically falling in August or September. The entire seventh lunar month is often referred to as ‘Ghost Month’, during which related observances and precautions are upheld.

In Cambodia, the distinct but related festival of Pchum Ben occurs on a different lunar cycle. It is celebrated over 15 days, with the main holiday falling on the 15th day of the tenth month of the Khmer lunar calendar. This typically places Pchum Ben in late September or early October in the Gregorian calendar. While the names and precise dates differ, both festivals share the fundamental purpose of venerating ancestors and attending to the needs of spirits.

Hungry Ghosts Festival Key Facts