02/09/2025
What is the Hungry Ghost Month/Festival?
Once a year, on the 7th month of the lunar year, something sacred and disturbing happens between the boundary of the living and the dead. The gates of Heaven and Hell open to allow the souls and spirits of the dead to wander the realm of the living.
Across China, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, and some parts of Japan and Thailand, the Hungry Ghost Festival is observed on the 15th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar (it's September 6, 2025, this year).
It may seem like a superstitious belief, but to the millions across the Chinese diaspora, it is known as the Ghost Month, a time for deep ritual, respect, and remembrance. It’s a spiritual moment with deep roots in Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucian thinking. It is also one of the mystifying and misunderstood celebrations in Chinese culture.
The festival of the “Hungry Ghost Month” is not just about the spirits but also of taboos, stories, and practices that strive to connect the living with the lost. Some of these act as behavioral and social rules that try to promote awareness and safety during this period of time. It aligns with the principle of preserving ‘yang’ energy. Some examples of these rules are:
• Don’t hang clothes after dark
• Don’t sit in the front row of operas
• Don’t whistle at night
• Don’t go swimming (spirits might drag you under)
Other countries that have celebrations such as the Chinese “Ghost Month” are:
• Japan – Obon Festival
• India – Pitru Paksha (ancestor fortnight)
• Mexico – Dia de los Mu***os (Day of the Dead)
These traditions enable us to live fully in the present as we share the same human urge to honor the past.
