During the 7th Month, Chinese tend to avoid doing things, so what are they?

1 Moving House

2 Renovating

3 Opening of Shops

4 Marriage

5 Give Birth (difficult to believe, but people are doing so)

6 Celebrating Birthdays

7 Moving furniture in own home

8 Going out and returning home late

9 Going overseas

10 Go swimming or jogging in mountainoues area

So what are the some others that you want to share with us?

These are purely Chinese Superstitions. According to Chinese Almanac (Tong shu), certain dates are suitable for moving house, renovating, marriage etc.

I usually go overseas for holidays during the 7th month (b/c it is cheap to travel during that period).

But since these "thinkings" are deeply rooted in our Chinese mind, I think we just have to follow them accordingly.

How about the Extra-7th month like the one after the 7th month this year?

For the 2nd month, just treat it as a normal lunar month, as usual, pay your respect to the Deities at home, no need to burn anymore joss for the Good Brothers, cos they will only allowed to be released for the 1st month.

Some people will still forbidden themselves to many rules on the 2nd month, actually no need.

The most important is yourself. If you are doing good, no need to afraid of other "beings" disturbing you. :P

According to Buddhism, the 7th lunar month is actually an auspicious month. This is because of of Ullambana. During this period, the Sangha traditionally come out of their retreats after the monsoon season, andalong the way many marits are accumulated and dedicated. Also Mahamaudgalyayana (Mu Lian) sought advice from Buddha on how to liberate his mother from the realm of the Pretas, and consequently the Ullambana Sutra was born in this month.

According to Tibetan astrology, there are many auspicious days in the 7th lunar month, and the number of inauspicious days are just as many as there are in any other lunar months.

From what I learnt, there is no such thing as ghost month or anything like that in Taoism as well. Mainly it stemmed out of tradition Chinese beliefs, e.g. Chinese Shamanism, Folk Religion, etc. So there is no need to be extra careful if you don't believe or subscribe to these traditional beliefs.

Of course, offering food and clothing to tyhe deceased is a good thing because it lets us practise charity and generosity not only to those who are alive, but those who are gone also. Even those wandering spirits will gain merits through your generosity. So long as you don't go overboard and be superstitious, I believe your merits will be increased manifold due to the offerings.

Sarva Mangalam