July is just a month of your soul?
According to popular beliefs for a long time, the 7th lunar month every year is called the month of the soul. Vietnamese people believe that this is the month where the evil spirit will operate most strongly and many people also set out and believe in it in the 7th lunar month.
Talking to Lao Dong, Prof. Dr. Ngo Duc Thinh, Director of the Vietnam Center for Research and Conservation of Culture and Culture, said that the concept of July she had had for a long time, but there were two events close to each other this month that many people still mistakenly thought that it was the day of worshiping the soul and Vu Lan Hieu. "The month of the soul was the month when the dead were opened by Pluto to the earth, and in the July Buddhism there was also Vu Lan holiday - the day for children to filial piety of their parents and the legend of Muc Lien to hell to save their mother. These two events were relevant but not one.
The soul of the dead without worshipers will be opened to escape to the ceiling to go earn a living. The fact that the monk saved his mother from hell to the world is also related with another meaning, which is to report the loss of his parents. We need to distinguish between these two events," said Prof. Dr. Ngo Duc Thinh.
According to Prof. Dr. Ngo Duc Thinh, depending on the region, there will be things to should abstain from it during the month of the soul. For example:
- Avoid going out at noon: According to the belief, having a good day on the streets is often a nightmare day, so going out at noon is not good. If you do, you should go close to the road, not in the middle of the road.
- When offering the soul as a sticky rice, congee, burning offering: When the family worships these things, the ghost passes through the door and has food and will not be harassed.
- Avoid trading during the soul month, if you do it in that month, it will not be successful. Don't get married, don't build a new house... if there's nothing urgent.
Is Ki Ki a superstition?
In response to opinions that the things she abstains from show superstition, cultural expert Ngo Duc Thinh denied this. "From a religious perspective, I see nothing as superstitious, in European countries, many people abstain from Friday the 13th. If anyone believes it, if they do not abstain, it is fine, because until now, if they are truly on the path, wandering around science, they cannot be studied.
The things that are avoided from a certain perspective also bring customs values. Not the best, but if not urgent, it should not be done, and there is no superstition that just following the concept of doing work on those days is not good. The 7th month of the soul is actually a month with many values and many sacred things that should not be considered superstitious," said Prof. Dr. Ngo Duc Thinh said.
