Ghosts and Chinese Superstitions

The Chinese culture has cultivated various methods for keeping ghosts and other night ‘things’ at bay. They say for people who have a certain ‘light’ birthday and birth time can have a propensity for seeing spirits and ghosts. So for these people and for the times when you need to travel to certain dark or bad aura-ed areas, here are some tips:

1) Wear red underwear
2) Wear red shoes
3) Wear a strand of forty-nine garlic bundles on your head
4) Wear jade
5) Wear crystal
6) Wear a safety charm (you can get these at Buddhist temples)
7) Carry seven pieces of leaves from a banyan tree.
8) Carry 36 pieces of glutinous rice.
9) Eat a dish called “Pig’s feet with noodles” (actually, this is for after).

Hotel rooms also tend to be a place where the ‘yang’ is weaker than the ‘ying’. People go in and out, but they don’t stay, thus causing ghosts to gather. Here are some things to observe when you enter a new room to make sure your rest isn’t disturbed:

1) Knock before entering the room, showing respect to anyone or anything that may reside there.
2) Flush the toilet. This means to flush out any bad influences.
3) Don’t place socks or shoes neatly by the bed, or it will be easier for ghost to find the bed and bother your slumber.

Heading out at night? Some things to observe so the spirits will not bother you:

1) Don’t turn around if someone taps you on your shoulder.
2) Don’t wear clothing with your name on it, or the spirits could call you out.
3) Don’t shine flashlights into trees, ghosts like to hang out there.
4) Don’t pat your friends on the head or on the shoulder. A person has three fires to keep spirits away, two on the shoulder, one on the head. Putting it out means it’s easier for spirits to enter them.
5) Don’t press your chest against the floor or against a dark place.

It’s dark out there in the night, watch out for uninvited spirits!