What is Mid-Autumn Festival? Why is it called Ghost Festival? What are the customs?

Every year, the Mid-Autumn Festival is in the seventh and a half month of the lunar calendar. This day, also called "Ghost Festival", is one of the traditional festivals handed down according to ancient records. So what are the traditional customs of Mid-Autumn Festival and what do people need to do on that day? Let's take a look.

When is the Mid-Autumn Festival? Date of Mid-Autumn Festival in 2020: Wednesday, September 2, 2020 (July 15 of the Year of the Rat, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival).

What is the Mid-Autumn Festival? It is also called "July Festival" or "Orchid Festival" and is one of the three major ghost festivals. Mid-Autumn Festival is a Taoist saying. The name "Mid-Autumn Festival" originated from the Northern Wei Dynasty. In some places, it is usually called "Ghost Festival" and "Stone Drum", also known as the Day of the Dead and July 30th. According to ancient records: "The Taoist scriptures are Shang Yuan on the 15th day of the first month, Zhong Yuan on the 15th of July, and Xia Yuan on the 15th of October. Mid-Autumn Festival is not only a folk ghost festival, but also a Taoist Mid-Autumn Festival, a Buddhist Bonner Festival, and a third-rate sacrificial festival integrating Buddhism, Taoism and folk customs.

How the Mid-Autumn Festival came about: ancient land sacrifice.

It was a small autumn before July, and a batch of crops were ripe. As a rule, people should worship their ancestors, offer sacrifices, such as new rice, and report Qiu Cheng to their ancestors. The first volume of Song Mengyuan's Dream of China in Tokyo said: "The day before Yuan Zhong, when I was enjoying the sacrifice, I bought practice leaves to line the table, and also bought a Magu nest, which was also tied to the foot of the table. This was my ancestor Qiu Cheng's mind." China people who pay attention to filial piety should report to their ancestors and ask them to taste new things, so they make sacrifices to their ancestors in July. Later, it gradually developed into the tomb of ancestors and the atonement of the dead.

Can I burn paper on July 30th? Mid-Autumn Festival is July 15, and in some places it is July 14. On this day, all ghosts will be released from the underworld and let them return to the dead to meet their loved ones. Therefore, people generally worship ghosts, go to graves, burn incense and burn paper on this day. If you burn paper, incense and go to the grave in advance, then the ghost of your loved ones will not receive your heart before returning to death. Therefore, generally speaking, you can't go to the grave, burn incense or burn paper in advance during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

The 15th day of the seventh lunar month is the annual Ghost Festival in China, which Buddhism calls "Magnolia Festival". According to legend, on this day, Yan Luowang will open the gate of hell "the gate of hell" and let the imprisoned ghosts come out to move freely until the end of July. Therefore, during this period, it was popular among the people to worship their dead relatives, burn gold ingots, paper candles and set off river lanterns, so as to pray for ancestors' blessing, eliminate disasters and increase happiness, or cross over for dead souls and resolve grievances.