Accordingly to the traditional Chinese belief, the gates of Hell will open for 30 days in the 7th Chinese Lunar month. Ghosts are then free to roam about and some would even cause mischief. In the evenings of the 14th or 15th day (normally), us Chinese would make offerings (paper money, paper clothes and such, food, candles and joss sticks) at the roadside outside our homes in hope that the mischievous wandering spirits would not cause trouble to our family. Chinese families like my in laws would have prepared 'kam ngan yee chee' (paper money and materials) ahead of time - folding paper money into the shape of gold nuggets - to be burnt on such day. On the streets, we can see temporary structures and stages for performances to 'entertain' the spirits'. When I was a little girl, I remember that these performances used to be elaborated Chinese operas set up in front of a Chinese temple. I used to enjoy the shows very much. Nowadays, they are mainly singing performances... a very much watered down version of what it used to be.
During the Hungry Ghosts festivals, it is also important to worship our ancestors. This offering to our ancestors usually precedes the street offerings to the wandering ghosts. We did something extra for my Dad. In the 1st 3 years after my Dad passed away, we put up an altar (table) for my dad in a temple in Melaka for 3 days 3 nights of Buddhist blessings during the 7th month. We had to register months ahead to get a good table for my dad. The monks in the temple would chant blessings for our ancestors in hope to 'lift' their spirit up in their after life. It was believed that the wandering spirits would also gather outside the temple to get some of this blessing. On the last day, all the tablets were put on a huge paper ship to be burnt with our offerings. Meaning... our ancestors would 'sail' back to where they belong. This ritual is still happening every year in this Melaka temple for those who want blessings for their ancestors.
How about the legend. I googled it up and found several versions of the 'Mu Lian' legend. Here is one version from www.essortment.com.
A long time ago, there lived a young man, Mu Lian and his widowed mother. His mother was a wicked woman. She often turned away beggars who came to her door asking for food. She liked to jeer at the working poor and their dirty clothes; in essence, the only person she cared about was herself.
Mu Lian on the other hand was a kind soul. He was a gentle person and always willing to help anybody who was in need. One day he decided to become a monk and this did not please his mother. She scowled at him for being such a useless son; she wanted him to go out and work to earn more money for her. Wealth and materialistic things meant more to her than anything else.
When she saw that she could not dissuade her son, a plan began to hatch in her mind. She decided to play a trick on the monks just to get back at them for taking away her son. Now it was the custom to offer food to the monks (this custom still exists to this very day), but only vegetarian food. Mu Lian’s mother thought that it was nonsensical that these monks did not eat meat, so one day she offered food to some monks and slipped in some non-vegetarian items.
According to one version of the story, the wicked woman was punished immediately and was sent to hell. Mu Lian wanted to save his mother’s soul because he knew her soul was suffering.
He set out and ventured deep into the bowels of hell. Soon he came upon his mother and he saw that she was sitting a bed of very sharp pointy stakes and was holding on to a basin of blood.
Mu Lian tried feeding her some food but the food would either turn into fire or blood. It was hopeless: he couldn’t do anything for her so he left. He returned home and started to pray.
It is said that Buddha heard Mu Lian’s prayers and was touched by Mu Lian’s compassion. Thus Buddha decreed that once a year, the gates of hell be opened so that the lost souls will be able to roam the earth and be fed. This is why every year on the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar, the Chinese celebrate the festival of the hungry ghost.
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