Hong Kong Zongli Monks

Chapter 88

In Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, the [-]th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar is the Yulan Festival. According to legend, the ghost gates of the underworld are opened, and countless ghosts flock to the yang world to linger, which can be described as "the sky is full of yin."

On July [-]th, Taoism calls it Zhongyuan Festival, and its origin should be related to the popular land worship in ancient my country.

After Taoism became popular, it attached to the tradition and created the three gods of heaven, earth and water.

It is said that Tianguan's birthday is on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, which is called Shangyuan Festival.Its main duty is to bless the world.

The birthday of local officials is on July [-]th, which is called the Hungry Ghost Festival.Its main duty is to forgive sins for the world.

Shuiguan's birthday is on October [-]th, which is called Wanwan Festival.Its main duty is to save the world from misfortune.

Contrary to Taoism, Buddhism determines that July [-]th is the Obon Festival.

Buddhism advocates compassion and kindness. During the three months of the rainy season in ancient India, Buddhist rituals prohibited monks and nuns from going out because going out would easily harm vegetation, insects, and ants. Monks and nuns were required to meditate and study in the temple and receive donations. This period is called the abode period.

After Buddhism was introduced to my country, according to the seasonal changes in our country, the period of safe residence was stipulated to be from April [-]th to July [-]th.

Later, according to the scriptures, the Buddhist legend of "Mugallana saved his mother" came into being.The general idea is that Moggallana, a disciple of Buddha Sakyamuni, saw his dead mother suffering in hell, and it was horrible.

He tried all means to save each other, but all failed, so he had to turn to the Buddha for help.

Sakyamuni explained that his mother's sins during her lifetime were very serious and could not be cured by one person's efforts. He told Moggallana to prepare all kinds of food and drink for the monks in the ten directions on the [-]th day of the seventh month, the day when the monks finished their peaceful retreat. With the help of the monks, his mother can be freed from suffering.

Mu Jianlian obeyed the instructions and it really worked.

This kind of Buddhist activity is called the Obon Festival.

Yulan is a transliteration of ancient Indian Sanskrit, which means hanging upside down, and describes the suffering of the dead.

Basin is Chinese, which refers to a container for offerings.

The Yulan Basin refers to such Buddhist activities, which can relieve the suffering of the deceased.

With the help of the traditional Confucian "filial piety" customs, Chinese Buddhism has evolved July [-]th into a "filial piety festival" that promotes Buddhism.

Not only has it been recognized by our country's traditional culture, but it has also been widely welcomed by the government and the people, so it has the greatest impact on the folk activities on July [-]th.

To pay homage to the dead on July [-], the most solemn thing is to release river lanterns.

Folk houses are used to using wooden boards and five-color paper to make lights of various colors, with candles in the middle.

Some people even write the names of the dead on the lamps.

Businesses and other units are used to making a multicolored underwater paper boat, which is called a Dafa boat.

Legend has it that all undead can be transcended to the ideal world on the other side.

There must be one person on the boat holding a Zen stick, which symbolizes Moggallana.

Some are also made into Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva.

At night, put paper boats and paper lanterns in the river and let them float along.

People judge whether the soul of the deceased has been saved based on the floating status of the lamp.

If the lamp swirls in the water, it is believed to be haunted by ghosts.

If the lamp sinks in the water, it is believed that the soul of the dead has been saved and has been reincarnated.

If the lantern drifts far away or reaches the shore, it is believed that the soul of the deceased has reached the other side of the world and is among the immortals in heaven.

All in all, all good wishes.

The river lanterns are especially spectacular in the Yellow River.Hequ County in the northwest of Shanxi is close to the Yellow River, with wide channels and gentle water flow.

On the night of July [-]th, all men, women and children in the city gather at the square in front of the stage on the bank of the Yellow River to watch the river lanterns.The lights of each color drift along the water, and children keep an eye on how far their own lights can drift.

The old woman muttered and prayed constantly.Today's river lantern has become a joyful activity.

Taoism and Buddhism have specific regulations and practices for activities on this day.

Folk sacrifices are relatively free, fearing that the offerings will not be enough for the ancestors and lonely ghosts to enjoy, those offerings.Thus formed a folk festival.

In the Northern Qi Dynasty's "Yan Family Instructions", the Southern Dynasties' "Jingchu Years' Records", the Song Dynasty's "Tokyo Menghua Lu" and "Meng Liang Lu", the Qing Dynasty's "The Records of the Imperial Capital" and other books Both mentioned the Ghost Festival and Obon Festival.

Some books say that a few days before the Hungry Ghost Festival, there are sellers of ghost utensils, seasonal fresh melons and fruits, oil cakes, pies, milk cakes and rich cakes in the market.

There is also the custom of placing lanterns on the water, which is meant to attract lonely ghosts in the water to enjoy the sacrifice.Children played with lotus lanterns made of paper, some of which were seven or eight feet tall and eye-catching.

There is an endless stream of people going out of the city to pay homage to the tomb, especially compared with the Ching Ming Festival.

I read it in literature and thought it was a folk custom popular in the Yellow River Basin. There may be this custom in other places, but it is not as authentic as the place where the Yellow River flows.

The Hungry Ghost Festival in Singapore is also called the Ghost Festival, where you can’t find the shadow of the river lanterns, and the time to celebrate the Hungry Ghost Festival has expanded from the [-]th day of the seventh lunar month to the whole month of the seventh lunar month.

During this month, people try not to move land, buy real estate, and travel as much as possible. Air tickets are also the lowest throughout the year. Some unbelievers take this opportunity to travel abroad.

Of course, believers still account for the majority, and the seventh month of the lunar calendar in Singapore is the scorching summer season, but no matter how hot the weather is, there are always few people in the swimming pool.

People will add one or two pieces of gold jewelry to ward off evil spirits during this month, and they will also pay attention to their speech and try to avoid saying unlucky words.

Children are especially miserable. It is said that children's eyes are very sharp and they can see things they shouldn't see. In order to prevent children from being frightened, many parents lock their children at home after seven o'clock.

Singaporeans believe that the first day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar is the day when the gates of ghosts are opened. In the following month, ghosts can freely enter and exit the yin and yang realms.
In the second half of the day, believers will put two candles on the grass in front of their house, and put Sanqi 21 sticks of incense next to the candles. Offerings such as tea are placed in front of the candles, and then the candles are lit and incense is worshiped for three times. After the worship, the Yin coins are taken, and the Buddha's mantra is burned in the incineration barrel.

In recent years, Zhongyuan Qingzan has faced a lot of problems. First of all, the younger generation influenced by Western culture cannot accept this rustic but very ethnic culture. Zhongyuan Qingzan has no successors.

Secondly, some people suddenly couldn't bear the smoke of burning paper and the noise of singing and bidding, and frequently complained to the government.

In the south, it is also called "ghost festival".

However, the Hungry Ghost Festival, which is still celebrated today, falls on July 7.

It is said that at the end of the Song Dynasty, when people were preparing to celebrate the festival, Yuan soldiers suddenly invaded, so they had to sacrifice to their ancestors one day in advance, and the festival was thus advanced.

On the day of the festival, people bring sacrifices and go to the grave to pay homage to their ancestors, which is similar to going to the grave on Qingming Festival.

In the feudal era, the local government also ordered the monks and Taoists in the temples to set up lonely soul dojos to pay homage to the soldiers who died in battle. During the Ghost Festival, people burned a lot of paper money.

(End of this chapter)