Peng Chou, Hong Kong
August 23-25, 2010
by P H Yang Photography (phyang.org)
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Hong Kong Celebrates Yu Lan (Hungry Ghost) Festival, a month-long effort to appease restless spirits of the dead.
One of the most traditional celebration was held on the small island of Peng Chou, about half an hour by ferry from the bustling Central Business District of Hong Kong.
The festival falls on the 15th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, and more than 60 celebrations take place across the city throughout the month to pacify roaming hungry ghosts.
Worshippers make offerings of food, letters and fake cash to satisfy the hungry spirits.
The festival is often celebrated on soccer pitches or in parks, mainly by the Chiu Chow community, estimated to number 1.2 million.
Legend has it that Mu Lian, then the oldest Buddhist monk, discovered that his mother was a hungry ghost who was suffering in hell due to her misdeeds in life.
The monk used his magical powers to offer food to his mother, but the food turned into charcoal in her hands.
Buddha advised him to ask monks and others to recite sacred scripts and perform rituals on the 15th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar in order to temporarily release all hungry ghosts - including his mother - to receive food.