bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Hungry Ghost Festival quiz: How much do you know?

How Hong Kong gets Hungry Ghost Festival all wrong, following superstitions not rooted in its Buddhist origins

A woman burns offerings on the street during Hungry Ghost Festival. Some other customs during the festival, however, aren’t necessarily grounded in tradition. Photo: Winson Wong

A man burns paper offerings during the Hungry Ghost Festival in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai neighbourhood. Photo: Winson Wong

Lavish food offerings for spirits of the deceased are common at the Hungry Ghost Festival. Photo: Nora Tam

Char siu restaurants are thought by some to be a place where hungry ghosts gather during Hungry Ghost Festival. Photo: Jonathan Wong

A still from The Eye (2002). Photo: Palm Pictures

Your Hungry Ghost Festival survival guide: don’t ‘borrow’ an umbrella, use a bus shelter at night or tap someone’s shoulder

An effigy of the Ghost King during a ceremonial ritual for the Hungry Ghost Festival at Tai Kong Po Tsuen, Pat Heung, Kam Tin in Hong Kong. Photo: Nora Tam

There are many things to avoid during the month of the Hungry Ghost Festival in Hong Kong, including not picking up an unclaimed umbrella - it could be housing a wandering spirit. Photo: Nora Tam

During the Hungry Ghost Festival, people honour the memories of the dead by presenting food, as well as burning “hell money”. Photo: Shutterstock

During Hungry Ghost Festival don’t “borrow” someone else’s umbrella, or you could admit wandering ghosts to your home. Photo: Nora Tam

Photo-taking late at night is to be avoided at all costs if you don’t want to capture a ghost in action or trap one inside your camera. Photo: Nora Tam

Rituals such as burning joss paper, or “hell money”, are meant to keep us on the good side of our ancestors. Photo: Edmond So

Lifestyle

What distinguishes the Hungry Ghost festival from Halloween? Test your knowledge about the festival.


Hungry Ghost Festival quiz: How much do you know?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}What distinguishes the Hungry Ghost festival from Halloween? Test your knowledge about the festival.

What distinguishes the Hungry Ghost festival from Halloween? Test your knowledge about the festival.