The seventh month of the lunar calendar is traditionally known as Ghost Month. It began on July 27, and according to Taiwanese tradition marks the opening of the gates of the underworld to let spirits loose for a month to be among the living.
There are a number of things that most members of the public avoid doing during Ghost Month, including not hanging laundry out overnight (for fear of ghosts wearing it while it is drying) and whistling after the sun goes down.
The Chinese-language United Daily News on Monday conducted an online poll inviting the public to submit their suggestions for the 10 most important pieces of advice to follow during Ghost Month, which runs through Aug. 24.
The results of the survey were as follows:
At number 10 was “don’t hang your clothes out to dry at night as it leads wandering spirits to mistake the clothes for living people whom they are free to possess.”
Number nine said: “Do not lean or walk against walls. Ghosts prefer walking along walls, where it is cooler.”
Number eight was to keep away from water, one of the longest-running and best known “rules” of conduct for Ghost Month.
Number seven was that if someone calls your name or taps you on the shoulder at night, keep walking.
“Traditionally speaking, having your name called or being patted puts a damper on your ‘internal fire,’ making it easier for spirits to torment you,” the report cited the poll as saying.
The sixth was not to whistle or tap your foot in any way.
“Spirits would get the wrong idea and think you were asking them to come visit,” the report said.
The fifth suggestion was not to buy a home during this month, while the fourth piece of advice was to try not to take the last bus, train, MRT car or whatever vehicle on your way home.
“The last trip is usually right around the time when grim and grinning ghosts come out to socialize,” the report said.
The third suggestion was to “be careful of being made a spectral ‘substitute,’” the report cited the poll as saying, as “many ghosts look for sacrificial victims for what’s called zhua jiao ti (抓交替) — literally, catching a substitute. It is said that if ghosts remove someone from the land of the living, they get a chance at reincarnation.”
The second-most popular piece of advice was to keep away from hospitals, while the most popular was not to take any photographs.
“Web users agree: Just do not take photographs outside at night. If uninvited creepy company happens to wander into your picture, it could be bad luck. You are also guaranteed to scare yourself by overthinking the significance of a shadow or reflection or the glow in your cat’s eyes,” the report cited the poll as saying.
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