To the eastern culture , the month of the seventh moon, which is between the second week of August and first week of September, is a month of hungry ghosts festival. This is the month where the spirit of the dead or the ghosts are released from Hades and are allowed to roam freely on earth.

I used to be skeptical about this belief when it was told by my grandma. We are advised not to go out too late at night or to go out at all in the evening. We should be very careful about going for a swim in the sea, especially where deaths have occurred before. It is believed that the spirits of the previous persons will need a replacement and if you are unlucky, the ghosts will pull you down into unknown depths in the sea. Now, that I am older, I am more observant and also more analytical. I based my reasoning on evidence and observations.

Coming back to this belief of the hungry ghost month, I ran an analysis of the bad omens that occurred during the seventh month. Now, if you will recalled , the late Princess Dianne was killed in the car crash in August 30, September 11 in New York is just at the end of seventh moon. And in 2007 August, the 40 year old interstate highway bridge spanning the Mississippi river, Minnesota, USA, collapsed during rush hours. The Hunan bridge in China collapsed in the month of seventh moon. The collapse of the Utah mine trapping miners and killing rescuers also occurred in the month of the seventh moon in 2007. The bursting of the Boeing 737800 of China Airlines from Taiwan in Japan also occurred during the seventh moon.

In Malaysia, the bus derailing off the road to a valley killing more than 20 passengers occurred during the seventh moon. Following that incident, a number of accidents involving several coaches occurred around the same month. The earth quake in Peru and Hurricane Dean hitting at Mexico are all bad omens during the month of the seventh moon. During this month, the Chinese would avoid any auspicious ceremony such as marriage, construction work or commencement of business and even postponing a surgery if possible. In Chinese belief, during this month, the dogs will howl long and wary.

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