What is the significance of offering sacrifices on July 15th of the lunar calendar?

The special rules for worshiping on July 15th of the lunar calendar include avoiding night walks, eating sacrifices, and patting people on the shoulders.

1. Avoid going out at night

On the Ghost Festival, if there is nothing particularly important to deal with urgently, try to go home as early as possible and avoid going out at night. According to the older generation, this is the day when ghosts are open, especially at night, when many ghosts will wander the streets.

2. Avoid eating sacrificial offerings

During the Ghost Festival, every household will place many offerings to worship their ancestors to show respect, such as various kinds of pork, chicken, snacks, fruits, meals, etc. According to folk wisdom, these sacrifices are usually not allowed to be eaten or moved around.

3. Avoid tapping people on the shoulder

There is a folk saying that everyone has three fires. On the special day of the Ghost Festival, if you pat someone else on the shoulder or head casually, it means that you will extinguish the fire on your body. Once the fire weakens or goes out, it will easily attract ghosts.

The origin of the Zhongyuan Festival is briefly described as follows:

The Zhongyuan Festival originated from the early "July and a half" farming harvest, autumn tasting and ancestor worship, and the birth of "July and a half" It can be traced back to ancient ancestor worship and harvest festivals. In ancient times, people often relied on the blessings of gods for a good harvest. Worshiping ancestors occurs in spring, summer, autumn and winter, but the "Autumn Taste" in early autumn is very important. Autumn is the harvest season. People hold sacrificial rituals to the spirits of their ancestors. They offer seasonal delicacies to the gods, then taste the fruits of their labor and pray for a good harvest in the coming year.

"July 15th" was originally a folk ancestor worship festival in ancient times. It was called "Zhongyuan Festival" because of Taoism after the Eastern Han Dynasty. In the Tang Dynasty, when the rulers respected Taoism, the Taoist Zhongyuan Festival began to flourish, and "Zhongyuan" was gradually fixed as the name of the festival. The festival was set on July 15th, and it has been used to this day.

Reference for the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia-Hungry Ghost Festival