It's midnight, do you know WHAT you are sleeping with?

The weather is hot, but the pools and the beaches are empty. Hospitals are quieter; no one is fighting for a ward or a bed. No one gets married; the restaurants are pretty much on their knees for any banquets. Nightclubs and pubs are cold, surely not from the full blown of the air condition. No one wants to get married, no one wants to buy a house of move to a new house. Is the global financial crisis finally takes the all around cheering Chinese society to a dead halt?

I am afraid not. The economists that are waiting for the great fall can put their sneaky smiles away.

The situation would last only for one particular month, July in lunar calendar. A month dedicated to the deceased, allowing them to freely roam the living world for the living pleasure.

鬼 Gŭei is the character for ghost in general. 鬼Gŭei月Yùei is the month of the ghost. Unlike the Halloween of the western culture, Chinese society dedicates the entire month for the deceased to share the space of the living. Why a whole month? Why not just give it a day and be over with?

The month of the ghosts came from the Buddhism, although many of the ritual practices were from Taoism. In the ritual practices of Taoism, there are three key worshipping days for the three different gods. January 15 (of lunar calendar, and all the dates mentioned hereafter), 上Shàn元Yuán, is a day for the god of heaven to give blessings; July 15, 中Zhöng 元Yuán, is a day for the god of earth to offer redemption or to pardon the sins for both the living and the deceased; and October 15, 下Xià 元Yuán is for the god of the water to take away the disaster so that people would not suffer from the consequences.

When Buddha (Gautama Buddha) was still teaching, he had a disciple who was one of the 10 key disciples that carried on the teaching after Buddha passed away. This disciple's name was Moggallana (or Maudgalyayana in Sanskrit), the name was translated as 目Mù莲Lién from the pronunciation of the Sanskrit. 目Mù莲Lién was known for his clairvoyant ability (or psychic vision if you must). His mother was not a believer, not only that, but she had committed sins that resulted in her being condemned to hell to suffer. When目Mù莲Lién saw his mother's suffering, he was in agony for not being able to redeem get his mother out of the abyss. In learning目Mù莲Lién 's agony, Buddha told him to make use of the July 15 when people made offering to the god of the earth by inviting as many monks and civilians alike to offer not only to the god of the earth but for the deceased that were suffering in hell. By doing so could目Mù莲Lién rescue his mother from hell.

Since then, the ritual gradually evolved into believing that on the first day of July, the gate of hell will be opened for the deceased to come out of it. During the 30 days, the deceased could live among the living, to visit their loved ones. And on the 15th day of the month, on the day for the earth god, people would join together to make bounty offerings to the deceased -普Pŭ渡Dù, a banquet or a feast for the deceased to indulge. Then on the last day of the month, the deceased shall return to hell and the gate is closed again.

Of course, ideally, all deceased should return to hell. But think of this hypothetically: you are dead and you have so many things left undone and now you are trapped in this inferno or the land of the deceased for eternity. Would you be fully satisfied with only the 30 days of freedom?

So next time, let's see what happened when "people" choose to violate the parole.

One thing for sure, it is not as simple and innocent as a "trick or treat".