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The paper effigy of Taai Si Wong sits behind an incense pot.
The effigy of Taai Si Wong is flanked by gold and silver mountains symbolising wealth.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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The month is still considered especially unlucky and many young people avoid getting married, moving house, changing jobs or making large investments in stocks, cars or homes.
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Local residents prepare offerings and carry them to the main altar at the playground and
join the ceremonies there.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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Tradionally every household has to prepare meat, fruits, fresh flowers. They offer these to the hungry ghosts at the playground or on a temporary altar table set up in front of their homes.
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Local people just want peace so they laid rice, meat and vegetables before an altar at the
sports ground. It is a five-course banquet for the ghosts.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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Appeasing the ghosts is done through preparing a sumptuous meal for the spirits.
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People are praying for good luck in order to help the Hungry Ghosts
to transmigrate to a new life.
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| Evening prayers |
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After a performance is over, the houses are pulled down and moved to a new site. All unbroken poles are reused.
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The presenter is here to encourage people to make donations and to buy some
miscellaneous objets. Well wishers are donating money to support this event by auctioning products
which are auspicious to get donations from the public. Funds are gathered to pay priests to
conducts prayers, buying offerings of food, josspaper, paper effigy of Taai Si Wong and
to pay for the stage performance by entertainers.
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| Presenter |
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These treasures are believed to have absorbed the prayers offered by the monks and thousands of devotees. People like to think that they contain magical powers that will grant the owners their wishes and desires.
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Auspicious items are auctioned off. The proceeds are used to fund the year's expenses.
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| Presenter |
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One of the highlight is the auction of treasures of fortune. i.e. auspicious items which have been placed at the altar throughout the celebration.
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Temporary open-air bamboo complexes are erected in local parks
or playgrounds.
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| Temporary open-air bamboo complexe |
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Shed theatres are usually made of bamboo, wood and palm leaves.
These materials are highly flammable and fires were a common hazard to
troupes and villages. By the early 1960s, some shed theatres were made
from galvanized iron, which was safer and stronger.
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| Temporary open-air bamboo complexe |
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On one side there is the theatre which is for running operas for ghosts, gods and human beings to enjoy.
In the other side is an an altar where huge sticks of incense are burnt. Behind the altar is the temporary
temple where the priests can recites passages from sacred books.
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| Temporary open-air bamboo complexe |
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It usually takes 10 workers about a week to build four small houses needed for the Yulan festival.
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About 4000 bamboo poles are needed to build the framework of a 20 000 sq ft opera house,
which is considered small. More than 10 000 are needed to build a big, 100 000 sq ft one. Hundreds
of iron sheets are used for roofs and some walls.
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| Opera house |
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Traditional Chinese operas are held to entertain and distract the spirits from their pursuit of chaos. Before seats at these operas remained empty as they were believed to be occupied by ghostly guests. Nowadays, believers politely inquiring whether the seats are taken. At least it is customary to leave the first row of seats empty for the hungry ghosts.
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Troupes like the Chiu Chow opera are a fast dying tradition, killed off by age and a lack of
interest among the young. Troupes are often coming from China and not anymore from Hong Kong.
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| Chiu Chow opera |
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Nowadays most of the audiences cannot follow the story lines. So some LCD panels display text in Traditional Chinese characters.
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Traditional Chiu Chow Opera singers perform in nightly marathons
for an audience of specters.
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| Chiu Chow Opera |
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Some Chinese people may observe restrictions during this month. For instance, some believe it is not advisable to wander out of the house at night for fear of encountering ghosts and no organisation of happy occasions such as weddings.
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Traditional Chinese opera singers perform in a makeshift stage before an elusive audience,
i.e. ghosts from hell, and humans.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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A brightly lit stage sits in the large sports ground, where traditional opera singers
provide entertainment for the evening.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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The ghosts like to see singing and dancing also. A full-scale Chinese Opera
is offered to them.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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Traditional opera singers provide entertainment for spirits at the start of a
three-day ritual during the Ghost Month.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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The opera is one of the highlights of Hungry Ghost month.
The Chinese also stage street operas in an effort to appease the spirits.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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Entertainment including Chinese opera singing and dancing is provided for the enjoyment
of the lost souls.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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Nowadays mainly middle age people are watching Chinese opera. Cantonese opera was very popular
before cinema apparition. Then cinema pushes also Cantonese opera as first movies were about Chinese
opera but then it gradually reduces.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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There are no more Cantonese operas in urban areas but performances are still happening during traditional festivals.
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Chinese opera VCDs performed in other festivals are on sales for fans.
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| Hungry Ghost festival |
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