It is common to see Chinese celebrating the Hungry Ghost festival at markets, hawker centers, shopping complexes or temples in Malaysia. An altar will be set up and besides the various paraphernalia for praying like joss sticks, paper money and food offerings, there would most certainly be a paper effigy of Da Shi Ye there. Some said Da Shi Ye is the leader of all Ghosts under the flagship of Kuan Yin and some said Da Shi Ye is a reincarnation of Kuan Yin. Kuan Yin most probably is the Goddess of Mercy herself, but I really don't know. Anyway, that night, the Hungry Ghost Festival celebration at Padang Brown, Penang ended with a big bonfire at around midnight. The effigy of Da Shi Ye was taken out for a short procession along the tarred roads that surrounds Padang Brown and then, when the procession endded, the effigy was burned with all the paper moneys offered in the middle of Padang Brown itself. The bonfire would most probably remind Westerners of Guy Fawkes Festival. But that festival of course has nothing to do with appeasing the spirits of hungry ghosts. It is more to mark the failure of the Gunpowder Plot of 5 November 1605, in which a number of Catholic conspirators, including Guy Fawkes (inset) attempted to destroy the Houses of Parliament in in London. That is another interesting story...
Would you be interested in Da Shi Ye or the paper money?
Hungry Ghost Festival 2010 ends here!
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