The Zhongyuan Festival, also known as Ullambana Festival among Buddhists, falls on the 15th day of the 7th Chinese lunar month, on Aug 30 this year.

Since ancient times, the Chinese have believed that the gates of hell open on that day and therefore people hold all kinds of activities to honor the ghosts. That’s the reason why the festival is also called the Ghost Festival.

There are many customs during the Zhongyuan Festival, such as floating water lantern, burning ghost money.

Floating water lantern
Among the folk customs of the Zhongyuan Festival, the floating water lantern is the grandest. The water lantern, also called lotus lantern, is usually made by pasting paper into a lotus shape. Then a lamp or candle is placed inside. On the night of the Zhongyuan Festival, lanterns are released into rivers or lakes.

People think that they should hang out lanterns to celebrate the ghosts. The purpose of this custom is to relieve the ghosts in the water and other wandering souls.

Burning Ghost Money
There is a custom to welcome ancestors at the beginning of July and send them off on July 15. When sending off the spirits, people will burn a lot of ghost money so ancestors can spend it in the nether world. They will also insert some ghost money into an envelope on which the user's name has been written. The envelope will be burnt for sacrifice.

(By Yang Jiming/Qi Qian)