Hungry Ghost Festival

Throughout this month, we have seen the many stages and offering tables set up as part of Ghost Month.  The Ghost Festival actually occurs on the 15th day of the 7th lunar month in the Chinese calendar, but events are held all month.  During this time, the gates of Heaven and Hell are opened and the spirits of the departed wander the earth.  Many ghosts or spirits return to their homes where family prepare offerings of food, clothing and money to ensure their ancestors are well cared for in their other world.  Hungry ghosts are those who have no home to return to, so wander the streets in search of sustenance.  Believers set up offering tables to appease these hungry ghosts and prevent them from entering their homes or businesses and causing havoc.  As part of the offerings, public performances of Chinese opera, puppetry or other arts are also performed.  These are often at maximum volume as the sound is thought to attract and entertain the ghosts.  If you attend a performance, you will notice the front row consists of red chairs or benches...these are not for the live audience, but are reserved for the ghosts and should not be used!
Brenna and I were able to attend a performance just down the street from our condo last weekend and although we could not understand the performance, it was fascinating to watch.  Such elaborate costumes and music and great facial expressions from the performers.  We hope to catch one or two more performances before the end of the month!

Almost every major Chinese neighborhood or business area in Penang also has an altar featuring and effigy of Phor Thor Kong, King of Hell, where offerings are made and devotees pray.  We had an opportunity to see how these effigies are made by local craftsmen, then visited a nearby altar and then proceeded to one of the opera stages for a "behind the scenes" tour.

The effigies are constructed from a bamboo frame, then covered in newspaper and eventually the beautiful colored papers and trim.  Kind of like a parade float in the US!

We'll send out more photos through Shutterfly.  Now, on to the opera stage.  Two of the troupe members played a brief song on the traditional instruments and allowed us to go back and look at the costumes.  We asked if Brenna could put on one of the head-dresses and here she is...

The interesting thing is that this year, the Ghost Festival is during the same month as Ramadan.  Ramadan is the month of fasting for Muslims and, accordingly, they avoid excesses during the evening hours which is in stark contrast to the loud, festive performances for the Ghost Festival.  The two communities seem to respect each other's needs and it's interesting to see how other countries deal constructively with cultural diversity. We hope to visit one of the markets to see some of the traditional foods prepared during this time of fasting and post about that soon.  Hope you enjoyed this post and let us know your e-mail address if you'd like to see more photos!