Hungry Ghost Festival "Pudu" Ceremonies in West Malaysia

【Writer: Lee Eng Kew】

In ancient China, Confucianism had the custom of worshipping ancestors and “Li”, or lost spirits (commonly known as “good brothers”). After the Han Dynasty, Taoism believed in the Three Great Emperor Officials, and the 15^th day of the 7^th month was the Birthday of the Earthly Official of Middle Origin Who Absolve Sins. According to the Taoist scriptures, on this day all kinds of food and drink, exotic treasures and other specialties were made as offerings and offered to the gods of the Great Canopy Heaven and Taoist priests, so that prisoned spirits could be released from their sufferings, as well as redeeming the dead souls of their ancestors. In Buddhism, there is also the Yulanpen Festival. According to the Yulanpen Sutra written by Dharmarakṣa, to save Maudgalyayana's mother, who had fallen into the hungry ghost realm, the Buddha told him that he had to offer a hundred kinds of rice. By offering food to the Sangha or monastic community, he could help the parents to live a hundred years free from sickness and all kinds of suffering, and they would be free from the sufferings of the hungry ghost realm for seven lifetimes.

Folk beliefs have absorbed elements of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism to form a different “Ghost Festival”. Unlike the Hungry Ghost Festival and the Yulanpen Festival, which fall on the 15^th of the 7^th lunar month, the Ghost Festival is celebrated throughout the 7^th lunar month, from the first day of the month, when the Gates of the Ghosts open, to the last day at the end of the month, when the Gates of the Ghosts close.

The Chinese community in Malaysia engages in Pudu Ceremonies throughout the Ghost Festival, whereby they pay homage to the Ghost King and present a multitude of sacrifices to the spirits of the netherworld. These offerings include foodstuffs and paper money, which are intended to feed the spirits and facilitate their continued existence.

In addition to sacrifices to gods, ancestors and solitary spirits, the Ghost Festival also includes Pudu Ceremonies held in various locations. Households or small private businesses are classified as private Pudu, while public Pudu is a large-scale collective festival. For example, most of these organisations, such as neighbourhoods, villages, residential areas, temples, large merchants, factories, and vegetable markets, as well as organisations based on geographical ties, blood ties, business ties, and so on, will organise Pudu ceremonies, inviting the monastic community to recite scriptures and offer food and clothing to the lost spirits to pray for the safety and well-being of people and animals, the removal of calamities and the alleviation of difficulties, the prosperity of businesses, and the benefits of the Yin and Yang realms.

In private household rituals, the deities and ancestors enshrined inside the house are worshipped first, followed by the "good brothers" outside the house. The offerings made to the ancestors typically encompass a range of items, including foodstuffs such as rice, tea, and wine, as well as livestock, cakes, fruit, and biscuits. Ultimately, paper money is incinerated. The offerings for the "good brothers" situated outside the domicile are more straightforward. Some people pay homage to the lost spirits at night. Additionally, some small businesses and factories conduct a modest private ceremony that is not accessible to the general public.

In the case of public Pudu, the smaller ones typically comprise merely offerings of paper money, whereas the larger ones may feature papier-mâché Ghost Kings, as well as the monastic community chanting sutras. Additionally, they may encompass banquets, traditional theatre, or modern song and dance performances.

The majority of Pudu ceremonies in northern Malaysia are membership-based, with each individual contributing a specified amount of money on a monthly basis. On the day of the ceremony in the 7^th month, each member receives an offering. The financial contributions made to the Pudu Councils in different regions of the country range from RM300 to RM200 annually, with some instances where the amount is RM100 or as low as RM20. In some cases, a partial share is offered, whereby only half of the money is paid and only half of the offering is distributed to the members. The funds are utilised not only for the purchase of offerings but also for paper money, papier-mâché statuary of deities such as the Ghost King, the establishment of stalls, the rental of tables and chairs, the hiring of the monastic community, and the staging of performances of songs and traditional dramas, and so on.

In some places in China and Malaysia, the councils are responsible for setting up tents, hiring Taoist priests and opera singers, etc. Members or the public are free to collect the offerings and take them home. Some of the offerings are bought by the council or paid for by the public, and these offerings are distributed to the public on the spot after the service, such as fruit, cakes, kuih muih, and so on. Packets of rice are given to charities such as orphanages on another day.

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