Disclaimer: In Real Life is a platform for everyday people to share their experiences and voices. All articles are personal stories and do not necessarily echo In Real Life’s sentiments.
“We tried out 4 of the biggest taboos surrounding the Hungry Ghost Festival in an attempt to see ghosts, and they all worked!” would be an amazing opening line for this article. Unfortunately for you, we weren’t brave(stupid?) enough to put any pantangs(superstitions) to the test ourselves.
We Malaysians are very familiar with superstition, usually having had stories passed down to us from our grandparents. We grew up with unspoken rules such as not being allowed to call each other by our real names in the jungle and that we have to wash our hands and feet with soap as soon as we arrive home.
The Hungry Ghost Festival is a gold mine of superstition
The Hungry Ghost Festival is a Buddhist and Taoist festival whereby the gates of hell are opened slowly over the 7th month of the Lunar Calendar and spirits are allowed to roam freely in search of food and entertainment.
Throughout the month, many prayers are carried out along with food offerings, burning of incense, and even mini concerts(called Ge Tai in Mandarin)! These rituals are carried out to appease the spirits so that they are occupied and do not cause trouble.
Needless to say, a festival like this with such heavy spiritual meaning and practice has a seemingly endless list of do’s and (mostly) don’ts. The taboos of this festival have been passed down for centuries and many have stories about seeing spirits when the superstitions were toyed with.
Here are 4 things these Malaysians did that led them to see spirits during the Hungry Ghost Festival!
1. Mess with or kick over roadside offerings
A common sight during this month is food and a few incense sticks along the side of the road, usually around the corner of a home or a business. This is so that the hungry spirits are able to satisfy their hunger outside without having to go in and bother a home/business.
“My friend accidentally stepped on someone’s food offering and for 3 days straight she had body aches and very gory nightmares. She told her parents and they brought her to a monk who told them that she had disturbed a spirit while it was eating.
“The monk told them to pray and burn hell money on the 15th day of the month. They burned money, a car, a house, and apologised for what had happened. By the end of the festival, she recovered fully and the nightmares stopped.”
2. Look through the King of Hell’s sleeves
During the month of the festival, altars with food offerings are set up in front of a giant paper statue/effigy of the King Of Hell. The spirits supposedly linger around the altar and like to sit under the tables to eat.
“A friend of mine had asthma and someone told her that if she ate food from the offering table for 3 consecutive years, the asthma would disappear. She did it the first year with no problem, but on the second year something happened that stopped her from going near the table again.
“She never told anyone in the community what she was doing and tried to be sneaky about it. She went round the back of the table behind where the King of Hell was to try to steal something off the table from there where no one could see her.
“Before her hands could reach the offerings, she looked through the statue’s sleeve and saw all the spirits eating off the table. She never told us what they looked like but she was too shaken to even go near those altars ever again.”
3. Leave your main door open at night
If not just to avoid getting robbed in the middle of the night, one should not leave their door open to stop spirits from wandering into their home.
“This was back in the 50s where small towns were quite safe. It was a time where we would leave all our doors, front and back, open no matter the time and we would not care when people walked by.
“During the Hungry Ghost month however, everyone always had their doors closed at night. My parents were away for a few days and I was left to tend to the house myself at 14 years old. I was lazy one night and just didn’t want to go close the door.
“That night was terrifying. I kept hearing shuffling noises all over the house and I swear I heard voices calling my name too. The scariest bit was when I heard a noise and opened my eyes to find a figure just looking at me from the foot of my bed.”
4. Sleep facing a mirror or a window
A commonly known taboo is to sleep facing a mirror as you may chance upon unwanted visitors in the reflection in the middle of the night. Sleeping with your bed facing the window leads these ‘special guests’ straight to you as well.
“Back in the 80s, I saw photos of European bedrooms with their beds facing picturesque views outside their windows and I wanted the same. My mom told me not to do it, especially during that month but I was a stubborn teenager.
“The night I moved my bed, I saw three figures in straw hats at the foot of my bed. I tried to get up but I couldn’t as there was another figure, a lady, sitting on my chest with her long black hair dangling all over my face.
“I kept trying to struggle and break free but I was paralysed and could barely breathe. I suddenly managed to sit up and I ran crying downstairs to my mother where I was met with an ‘I told you so.’”
Respect traditions and practices, better safe than sorry
Though it might be tempting to try these out for yourself as the taboos are all based on beliefs varying from person to person, we should refrain from making fun of or toying with them out of respect for our elders and others in our community who believe them to be true.
If curiosity does take over and you do try any of these though, let us know!
Do you have any Hungry Ghost stories?
Know anyone with an interesting story to share? Drop us an email at hello@inreallife.my and we may feature the story!
For more stories like this, read:
My Tua Ee Po Was The Center Of Every Hungry Ghost Festival, And Now She’s Gone
Here’s Why Malaysians Do These 3 Things During Hungry Ghost Month
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