In all the many Chinese Festivals that fill up the calendar perhaps nothing tops the spook chart than the Hungry Ghosts Festival. The name itself is a crowd puller and whoever makes the audience is fascinated by the range of events lined up from the beginning to the end.
The story behind the festival is just as interesting as the festival itself. The Chinese believe that every year at around the time of the festival, the gates of Hell are opened and the spirits from here are set free to roam the earth. As tribute to these souls of the dead, this festival is commemorated and several Chinese people gather on this day to remember and pray for the deceased members of their family.
In Honk Kong rituals of this Chinese festival usually falls somewhere in the month of August. Even if you are just passing by you can easily recognise the celebrations of the Hungry Ghosts Festival. Here believers congregate, perform prayers and burn traditional incense sticks. Oranges, bowls of rice, roasted suckling pig and a special Chinese Cake are served as an offering for the dead. As part of the event, several tents are set up in which traditional forms of activities are performed in view of entertaining the dead spirits. These live Getai and Wayang performances primarily depict mythical stories of the Gods and Goddesses but it also has a touch of comedy and music. The traditional acrobatic pole dance is also a major part of the Getai and Wayang performances. The burning of paper money is also another interesting custom that is believed to bring financial fortune in the afterlife. Anyone is welcome to watch this bizarre and certainly interesting event but be careful not to sit in the first row as it is reserved for the ‘special guests’…
Honk Kong is a truly exotic and beautiful little nation that is filled with plenty of different attractions. When exploring Honk Kong choose a good hotel in Kowloon to stay at and of all the Mongkok hotels, the Cosmo Hotel Mongkok always stands out as the best.
Pushpitha Wijesinghe is an experienced independent freelance writer. He specializes in providing a wide variety of content and articles related to the travel hospitality industry.