Bold tribute: A man tending to a pineapple-themed offering on the eve of festival at Queen Street in George Town, Penang. — LIM BENG TATT/The Star
GEORGE TOWN: With the month-long Hungry Ghost Festival underway, the sale of prayer paraphernalia is picking up steam.
Popular items at Eng Ong Heong Trading in Jalan Rangoon include sets of golden paper pineapples stacked atop piles of joss paper to be offered to the King of Hades (Tai Su Yeah in Hokkien) during the festival.
Pineapple-themed offerings are popular among Hokkiens as the fruit is called “ong lai” in the dialect, which means “good fortune has arrived”.
Shopkeeper Teh Guan Heng, 56, said little has changed over the years with the traditions connected to the festival.
“The offerings have remained almost the same over the past three decades.
“It is, however, burned in a larger volume (these days). Producing them in large quantities keeps costs down,” he said when met yesterday.
Teh said the metre-high golden paper pineapples were priced at RM300, with piles of joss paper money included in the set.
“There are larger sets priced at over RM1,000 each, but the RM300 set is the popular one,” he said, adding that most customers who bought the golden paper pineapples were businessmen.
The Chinese 7th lunar month, which began on Sunday, ends on Sept 2.
Tradition holds that during this month, the gates of hell open, allowing hungry ghosts to roam the earth in search of sustenance and entertainment.
Stages have been set up in predominantly Chinese areas in the state for performances to be held to entertain the spirits.
The Hungry Ghost festival is taken very seriously in Penang, with Phor Thor (merit-making) committees made up of residents and traders coming together to organise performances in their respective areas or streets.
It is believed that holding nightly feasts, offering free meals to the public, holding Chinese opera shows, as well as modern singing gigs will also entertain the ghosts – besides earning “merit points” for donors of such activities.
