The seventh month of the lunar calendar is the "ghost moon" in China folklore. It is said that every year on the 30th day of June of the lunar calendar, the Earth-hidden King Bodhisattva, who is in charge of hell, will open the gate of hell and release hungry ghosts until the 30th day of July. In order to make people and ghosts in the yin and yang world safe, our country has the custom of setting up Purdue in July since ancient times. Folk sacrifices are held on the first day, the second day, the fifteenth day and the last day of the ghost month in July. Ghost Moon also has many taboos, such as not wearing clothes with their own names, not patting others on the shoulder, not whistling, and children, the elderly and the infirm should not go out at night.
July 7th Ghost Festival
In ancient China, most people believed in ghosts and gods. Legend has it that anyone who dies normally can be reincarnated. People who die of the most heinous crimes become ghosts after death. These hungry orphans roam the world. Some evil spirits will also take the opportunity to harass the creatures in the world, causing people to die because of dangerous accidents. Therefore, people who die unexpectedly at this time of year are often called "taken away by ghosts" by their associations.
folk custom
I believe that the "Purdue" ceremony held for these ghosts can help them get rid of the suffering of hell as soon as possible, and on the other hand, I hope they will stop harassing the creatures in the world. Therefore, every July, in addition to the "Purdue" ceremony, we will burn more paper on the roadside and make a fortune. Later, it evolved into the custom of "putting on lights" and "respecting brothers".
Because this kind of Purdue means praying for peace, on the Mid-Autumn Festival in July 15, in addition to offering rich sacrifices to all "good brothers", the people also invited the troupe to perform the act of repaying the gods and hold a banquet for the guests, which was expensive. Now we advocate saving and improving folk customs. Although there are Purdue activities, it is much streamlined.
The cultural custom that everything is unsuitable in July of the lunar calendar is formed because last July was a series of natural and man-made disasters, which easily made people feel afraid of this period. In today's society, many taboos have gradually failed to stand the test of the times, but there are still some things that science still cannot explain.
Full moon sacrifice
(1) Open the underground gate.
The first day of the ghost month, that is, the first day of July, is the day when private houses need to be worshipped when they open their doors. On this day, the gates of hell are closed and ghosts come to earth, so it's summer vacation. There are big sacrifices and small sacrifices. The big sacrifice is to cook a rich dish, and the small sacrifice is to simply sell fruit biscuits. It's a tribute anyway. To tell the truth, the full name of respect is awe, mainly not respect, but fear. Why are you afraid? Because ghosts and gods have super powers. Moreover, ghosts and people have opposite schedules. People are in the light, ghosts are in the dark. It can see people, but people can't see it, which is a bit reluctant. Otherwise rule out the rule of law, why invite ghosts and gods to dinner for no reason? As the saying goes, people with short hands eat people with soft mouths. Although this worship is pronounced "eating", the implication is that if you eat these, you will come to my trouble less. If you rent in someone else's private house, there is no need to worship if the official does not repair the yamen and the guest does not repair the shop.
(2) Open the door of heaven
The second day of Ghost Month, that is, the second day of July, is the day when public places open. Enterprises, government agencies and other units worship one day later than private houses. The purpose of worship is to make this month pass safely, and don't do anything supernatural. Drivers still have to burn incense and pray in front of the sign. I am still very interested in life. Don't joke with me while driving, and don't drag me to the "standby".
(3) Mid-Autumn Festival
The 15th of Ghost Month, that is, the 15th of July, is the Mid-Autumn Festival. According to the truth, ancestors should be worshipped. This is not a strong teleology. Ancestors must be sacrificed Our ancestors met with tragic events or other difficulties, such as Japanese massacre, war, plague and famine. Our ancestors were in danger, and our will to survive was so strong that we came into being. If they suffer a little like some people now, they will die all day, and we will not exist long ago. Therefore, we should be grateful and be strong to create the future and endure the pain. The steps of our family's sacrifice are: reporting one's own name, ancestors' names and titles, reporting a feast and offering sacrifices, flipping a coin to confirm the arrival of ancestors, reporting this year's achievements, looking forward to the vision of the coming year, flipping a coin to confirm the enjoyment of ancestors, burning paper money and seeing off. Family members will buy some delicious food on holidays, but crabs can't be sacrificed, saying that they will scratch their ancestors' faces. On this day's dark night (early morning and late night), ghosts and gods meet, and the yin is the most prosperous. Similarly, the next day, that is, July 16, sacrifices were held in public places.
(4) Purdue Festival
There is a Purdue Festival on the Ghost Moon, and each family is divided into private houses. According to the sacrificial day handed down by predecessors, a banquet is held for Purdue sentient beings. The Chronicle of the Golden Gate (Volume 15) in Daoguang period said: "Since the first day of July, various societies have set up temples along the Buddhist Road as orchid clubs, commonly known as Purdue, to offer sacrifices to ghosts without owners. There is a public sacrifice in Lishe, and each family has a private sacrifice. " There are no public sacrifices now. Therefore, while making private sacrifices, every household is also sharing the obligation of public sacrifices. This time, the sacrifice was entirely out of goodwill. Because I became a ghost, I committed evil thoughts in my last life, and I suffered in the ghost in my life. Some people become hungry ghosts, their throats are as narrow as needles, and they don't eat or drink all their lives. There are ghosts and ghosts, and there is no sacrifice in the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is lonely and desolate. Therefore, to be a man, you should not only think about yourself, but also give love. If so, the good way will not die out, and it can also influence its genus, persuade it to be good, and get rid of the suffering as soon as possible. So, it's not just eating and drinking.
(5) Close the ground door
The last day of Ghost Moon, that is, the day before the first day of August, is called "Guandimen". This day is the day when ghosts return to hell after a holiday. We should start from the beginning to the end. On this day, we should also make sacrifices in order to keep peace for the rest of the day. If there was a sacrifice of "opening the door to the ground" in those days, it was the sacrifice of this day. If there was no "opening the door" in those days, there would be no sacrifice on this day. The festivals in China are so interesting and spectacular. I don't know whether there will be public security pressure on the day when the underground gate is opened and whether there will be traffic load on the day when the underground gate is closed.
Ghost moon taboo
1. Don't call your name directly: don't wear clothes embroidered with your name at night, lest you be possessed by Shen Yuan. In addition, it's best to avoid using other people's names, or once you hear them, you will take the opportunity to take away his three souls and six souls. At the same time, if you hear someone calling your name, don't look back and don't respond immediately.
2. Don't pat on the shoulder: From the perspective of evocation, a person has three fires, one on his head and two on his shoulders, so it is best not to pat others' heads and shoulders casually during the ghost month, so as not to douse the fire on him and let good brothers take advantage of it. When eating, you can't put chopsticks on your rice bowl. Its shape is like putting incense on an incense burner, which will attract good brothers to share food with you.
3, don't whistle, be careful that good brothers like you; When you pass the cemetery, you should keep saying "Sorry to bother you!" "And keep solemn, don't whistle, to show respect for good brothers.
4, don't go to dangerous waters to play with water, the legendary "water ghost" will find someone to be a scapegoat for reincarnation;
5. Don't steal sacrificial offerings, compete with ghosts for food, and be afraid of bad luck;
6, the bedside does not hang the wind chimes, because the wind chimes will attract yin; I don't play disc fairy either. Don't plant banyan trees that are easy to get stuck in the shade in front of your house. In addition, don't hang wind chimes at home, don't play with disc fairy, and don't go to Yin Temple, which can reduce the possibility of Yin qi getting into the upper body.
7, go to the wild or remote places less at night, and people with light personality are afraid of bumping into good brothers;
8. Don't pick up change and red envelopes on the ground. Don't pick up the money on the roadside casually, because it may be a good brother's, otherwise it will be used for ghost weddings.
9. When passing through the funeral place, there should be no disrespectful thoughts or words in your mouth and heart;
10, avoid stepping on paper or burning paper;
1 1, don't lean against the wall: don't lean against the wall if you have nothing to do, because good brothers generally like to rest against the wall, which is easy to attract ghosts.
12, put away clothes to prevent ghosts from "borrowing": take back clothes that are drying outside at night or before dark to avoid being borrowed and worn by ghosts.
13, don't take pictures: it's best not to take pictures at night, or a good fraternity will look in the mirror with you and don't shine a flashlight on the tree, so as not to disturb the good brothers who like to stick on the treetops.
Matters needing attention
Ghost Moon is the heaviest month in Yin Qi. According to the rumor of catching "backup" (that is, whipping boy), children, the elderly and other weak or sensitive people should not go out at night to avoid being attacked by yin. In addition, it is best not to go into the water, especially into the sea. In short, don't do things that are easy to die. Don't even play supernatural games like Disc Fairy. Especially on the night of July 15, it's extremely cloudy, so go to bed early if you have nothing to do. Many taboos, too numerous to mention at home, can't be prepared. In fact, as long as it doesn't affect my normal life, I'd rather believe it or not. For many people, whether it is useful or not, at least they can find inner peace. Some people are used to carrying things to ward off evil spirits, such as amulets, beads, or crude salt, glutinous rice and other evil spirits; Cross or ore with special energy, etc.