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Showing posts with label Taoism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Taoism. Show all posts

Monday 15 August 2011

Hungry Ghost Festival: How to avoid meeting ghosts? When the ghosts see red! Fascination for all things spooky





How to avoid meeting ghosts

By BEH YUEN HUI newsdesk@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: Cutting hair, shaving, going for outings and hanging clothes outside the house are among the things people should avoid doing at night throughout the Hungry Ghost Festival.

People should also avoid moving house and getting a new vehicle, as it is believed that the chances of bumping into ghosts are higher by doing all these.

“Keep away from the walls because ghosts love sticking to it,” said Master Szeto Fat-ching, a famous exorcist and feng shui guru from Hong Kong.

He said although ghosts are around during daytime, they are more active at night.

Thus, precautions have to be taken during the month-long festival beginning July 31 when the Hell Gate is open and the spirits are allowed to return to the human realm.

Master Szeto also said women are more prone to seeing ghosts than men.

Famous guru: Master Szeto talking as the guest deejay for 988 radio station in Kuala Lumpur recently.
According to the Yin and Yang philosophy, women belong to the Yin category the same as ghosts and so they are easier to “click” with each other.

“There's nothing to fear because the ghosts are more afraid of humans than we are of them.”

Dubbed the Ghost King of Macao, Master Szeto was invited here by Chinese radio station 988 as a guest deejay in a ghost-related programme in conjunction with the festival.

He also shared his stories and exchanged views with over 300 supernatural fans at an “up close and personal” session here on Wednesday.

Besides the above mentioned taboos, Master Szeto also warned the public to not take the offerings on the streets that were served to the “homeless spirits” or make fun of the belief.

Read more in Daily Chilli (www.dailychilli.com) about Master Szeto's encounter with a tree demon in Sabah, which left him confined to his bed for three months.


When the ghosts see red!

By CHRISTINA CHIN sgchris@thestar.com.my

Taoists believe that spirits are at their most powerful during the seventh lunar month.

IT'S Hungry Ghosts or Phor Thor festival now. The Chinese equivalent of Halloween, the festival is still very much alive in predominantly Chinese areas like Penang, and believers are now busy appeasing the spirits through ritual food offerings, burning of joss paper, and stage shows.

According to Taoist ghostbuster Ong Q Leng, spirits are at their most powerful during the seventh month of the Chinese calendar but those released from the gates of hell are not harmful.

“The harmful ones are the restless spirits that roam the earth freely throughout the year,” says Ong, who claims to have seen them all, from office hauntings to eerie bodily possessions.

The 34-year-old spiritual healer shares some advice with those low on luck during this festival.

Heavenly protection: Lai, possesed by Tua Pek, preparing a talisman for a family of devotees.
“Do not wear red this Hungry Ghost Festival. The spirits are drawn to red, so avoid anything red, including underwear. This is especially so if things have not been going smoothly for you these past few months.”

She also warns believers against going out past 9pm.

“Stay away from drugs and alcohol because it's easier for spirits to take over those who are intoxicated. If you are always alert, it's also difficult for people to cast a spell or charm you.”

Ong's caution may offer some “personal protection” against the unseen but hauntings are not limited to people.

The 65-storey Komtar tower in Penang which houses Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng's administration has its fair share of stories about ghostly apparitions. Staff members who experienced unnatural phenomenon on one of the higher floors recently called in an Ustaz to conduct prayers and sprinkle black pepper, apparently to “cleanse” the place.

Law firms seem to be a popular haunting ground in old George Town, with chilling tales ranging from smelling burning incense late at night to seeing an old woman roaming the corridors.

A 33-year-old senior partner in one firm shares: “A feng shui practitioner came to our office once and saw a child running around. In fact, we had an employee who suffered a miscarriage and it is thought that the baby's spirit followed her to work.”

Another lawyer, who also declined to be named, relates how a client saw “another lady” in the conference room when there were just two of them.

“My boss too has a gift' for seeing these things'. One day, he saw an old woman wandering along the corridor but she vanished as he approached her. I've heard that during the Japanese Occupation, soldiers were beheaded here.”

At a developer's firm not too far away, the office workers have come to terms with sharing their premises with “unseen friends”.

“There have been many unexplained incidents; the air-conditioner starts even after it has been switched off and radio channels change randomly. A monk hired to cleanse the place failed to drive away the spirits, claiming there were just too many to capture.Every year during the Hungry Ghost Festival, we make offerings to the spirits here,” one senior staff confides.

Even cars are not spared the spooks. Writer E. J. Loh, 46, recalls how a nee-kor (nun) who performed the funeral rites for her premature baby, sold her car, claiming that the child's spirit was “disturbing” her. The nun had driven the dead child in a casket to the crematorium.

Ong, who offers healing, spiritual cleansing, feng shui tips and general consultation to her clients, reckons that seven out of 10 cases she sees are caused by evil spirits or black magic. Her clients are from different races and religions, and include Germans, Australians, people from China and Hong Kong, and Singaporeans.


She says she has seen cases of clients experiencing extreme body aches, youngsters speaking in old voices, and those who cannot stop sobbing or whose eyes and tongues are rolled back as they stare blankly into space.

“Whether it's Thai kong tau or Chinese mao shan (black magic), it doesn't matter. I will try to help as long as the victim trusts me.”

Ong, who always appears confident, is the first to admit she is not always this brave. Growing up, she says, she used to be scared out of her wits by apparitions she saw, which led to her stuttering as a child. But by the time she was 11, she was so fed up of being frightened that she started “scolding the spirits and threatening them not to bother her”.

Four years ago, while working as a sales representative, it dawned on her that she could use her “gift” to help others.
 
Her most recent success was helping 73-year-old Zainab Sulaiman from Kelantan. The widow, who lives in a wooden house in Kampung Penambang Bunga Emas near Kota Baru with her daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, had been plagued with hundreds of mysterious fires which destroyed over 250 articles of clothing, mats, curtains, mattresses and many other things. Last month, Zainab made a trip to Penang to thank Ong.

For Ong, the more evil spirits she battles, the stronger and more alert she feels.

“I don't get tired although I sometimes work from early morning until past 3am.”

Temple medium Lai Seng Hee says the younger generation are not as sceptical about ghosts as you would imagine.

“The temple is always packed with devotees who include young Mercedes-driving professionals and businessmen,” he shares.

Lai, 47, goes into a trance at the Leong Hong Keong temple in Penang to assist Tua Pek (Grand Uncle) devotees to communicate with the deity.

The temple, which was established more than three decades ago, is dedicated to underworld deities - Tua Pek and Jee Pek (Second Uncle). Tua Pek - the Chief Inspector of Hades - always carries a fan while his assistant Jee Pek, carries a chain. Together, the brothers are known as Poh Tiao Pek.

Three nights a week, Lai goes into a trance until way past midnight. Devotees come from as far as Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Kedah with pleas to cure their illnesses, prolong the life of a sick loved one, or keep away evil spirits.

Lai's service was procured after the tragic and gruesome murder of three-year-old Ooi Ying Ying in 2007, a case that jolted the nation. Lai used a dried, wax-coated lime to communicate with the dead girl a method the former electrician learnt from a sifu (master) in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

The seance was filmed by a Hong Kong production company for a documentary.

Lai's expertise was also sought to help “collect” fragments of Ying Ying's soul and conduct rituals to appease her soul.

Lai says during the Hungry Ghost month, spirits of the ancestors will try to contact their living descendants.

“They don't mean any harm. They may have some requests or want to warn their families of some impending danger.”

Fascination for all things spooky

By CHRISTINA CHIN 

MALAYSIANS are a culturally diverse lot but one common thread is their fascination with the supernatural. Whether you are Chinese, Indian or Malay, stories of ghostly encounters are part and parcel of the Malaysian experience.

While our spooks look nothing like the Twilight films' vampire heartthrob Edward Cullen, the local spirits, ghosts and ghouls are, indeed, hauntingly real for some.

Weighing in on the subject of Malaysians' fascination with the supernatural, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) associate professor Dr Muhammad Azizan Sabjan from the School of Humanities (philosophy and civilisation section), explains that from an Islamic perspective, jinns do exist.

“The main difference between them and us is that they are invisible. Only those bestowed special skills or talent' by God can see them,” he explains.

“So, the belief in the existence of jinns in modern times is not superstitious but the way one conducts certain ceremonies to appease them, is,” he adds.

But ghosts have been unfairly blamed whenever something goes wrong, Xiao En Cultural Endowment chief executive officer Dr Ong Seng Huat (pic) opines.

Dr Ong, who is also a Taoist high priest and a visiting professor to China's National Overseas Chinese University (faculty of religious and cultural studies), says the supernatural is a convenient excuse and one that is widely accepted even today.

“For instance, mass hysteria happens when one loses coordination, consciousness of identity, feeling and body movement. You read about it happening in schools a lot lately. Is it the doing of a spirit or are pressure and stress really the culprits?

“People sympathise when you tell them that you are disturbed' by a ghost or someone has placed a hex on you; but admit to being mentally ill and you will be shunned. So mental illness is often passed off as a ghostly encounter,” he explains.

However, ghostly encounters are not to be dismissed, he says.

For the Chinese, there are ancient textbooks that list down symptoms of patients' ailments based on the type of ghosts they encountered.

“The old Chinese physicians were learned people who addressed all these problems. They didn't just blame it on the supernatural,” says Dr Ong.

In ancient China, he says, the ashes of paper talisman with Chinese writings actually had medicinal properties. The paper dispensed to patients who claimed to have been afflicted by ghosts was made from plants like ginger and bamboo leaves.

“And jossticks in the old days had aromatherapy benefits. These days, the talisman handed out may cause more harm than good. I don't even know what they are made of.”

Dr Ong says society's belief in the supernatural has its pros: “When you believe in the realm of the ghosts and gods, you will be more inclined to do good for fear of the repercussions.”

Related posts:

Ideas for positive energy,Tips on harmonising bad vibes, Spiritual activity heightens

Ghostbuster can’t heal busted hearts

Tuesday 27 July 2010

Ideas for positive energy,Tips on harmonising bad vibes, Spiritual activity heightens






 Spiritual healer gives talk on home decoration

SPIRITS are everywhere so even if your home is next to a cemetery, you should be able to sell it if the price is not too high, said spiritual healer Master Ong Q Leng.

She was speaking during the question and answer session after her talk themed ‘Protecting Your Property From Bad Energy’ at the Star Property Fair 2010.

Master Ong giving feng shui tips to the crowd
.
“Spirits are everywhere all the time, day or night, you just can’t see them.

“There are people who are not superstitious and they will be willing to buy the property, especially if they can make a profit from it,” she said, when asked if it was okay to leave an apartment empty if there were cemetery plots on both sides of the property.

“If a property does not sell, it is not necessarily because of bad feng shui. You may be asking too high a price. A buyer will already have scouted the area for the right price. Try lowering the price, and you might be able to sell it off.”

To a question on colour schemes, Ong said certain people suited certain colours and people should observe how they felt or how things fared when they chose a certain colour to wear.

Asked if it was really suay (unlucky) to wear all black or black and white, Ong said that it was true that the colours did not suit many people:

“Try it for one or two days, if it does not feel good or things go wrong, then the colours are probably not suited to you,” she said.

Speaking in Hokkien and Mandarin, with English translation provided by master of ceremonies Por Joo Tee, Ong also advised the crowd to try not to wear red or use too much red.

A couple then told how they fell in love with a painting of a tiger and bought it for their home only to be told by a medium that the tiger would “eat up” all their fortune.

Ong said paintings of animals had no bearing on people but reminded them to place them only in the hall and not in the bedrooms, and that the paintings had to face another wall and not the main door or balcony.
“It is only a painting, and cannot harm us. But if you feel unhappy after putting up any decoration, then just take it down,” she said.

Asked on the best stance or image to choose when buying idols of deities, Ong said what mattered more was the idol’s condition.

“If after some time praying to the idol, you feel that things are going well, then it should be fine. If you feel that things are falling apart, then it’s probably not right,” she said.

Asked if the idols of Hok Lok Siu (three Chinese deities representing good luck, status and longevity) could be placed inside the house, Ong said they could only be placed as decorative pieces but not as idols to pray to because they were only supposed to reside at temples and not at houses.

She also told the audience to pray from the heart and not out loud and face the sky with eyes closed and hands clasped together, preferably between 6am and 11am, and to say please when praying.

“Don’t be too greedy but remember to pray for your own health and strength first before praying for your loved ones,” she added.

Ong’s talk received a great response from the large crowd.

Source: Starmetro

Tips on harmonising bad vibes

By PRISCILLA DIELENBERG
prisdberg@thestar.com.my

TECHNICALLY, there is no house with bad feng shui, according to spiritual healer Master Ong Q Leng.

“Even houses with the worst chi (vital energy) can be corrected,” claimed Ong, 34, who offers healing, spiritual cleansing, feng shui tips and general consultation services.

Ong: Her talk will be in Hokkien and Mandarin.
She said some old houses had bad chi because of spirits that co-habited the space over the years.

“There are three types of spirits - those that are wandering as they could not move on after death, those that chose not to move on though they could, and the bad ones that go around causing trouble,” she said.

Ong added that proper cleansing had to be done to appease the spirits that caused distress or unrest to those who occupied the house.

“When I enter a premises with bad chi, I use my sixth sense to get a clear picture of the situation and instructions from my spiritual master, and take it from there,” said Ong.

She will share her thoughts on a combination of feng shui and paranormal phenomena during her talk on ‘Protecting Your Property From Bad Energy’ at 4.30pm on Sunday at the Star Property Fair 2010.

Her talk will be in Hokkien and Mandarin, with a smattering of Bahasa Malaysia and English. There will be a translator on standby to help with the question-and-answer session. The talk is for non-Muslims only, and admission is free.

Ong will also be giving tips on auspicious locations within a house, choosing colour schemes and how best to arrange certain furniture.

The talk will be among the highlights of the three-day fair to be held at G Hotel and Gurney Plaza from 10am to 10pm starting today until Sunday.

More than 20 major developers, including some from Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, will offer an array of property launches, special packages and attractive rebates during the event, organised by Star Publications (M) Bhd in collaboration with Henry Butcher Malaysia Penang.



Spiritual activity heightens

By PRISCILLA DIELENBERG
prisdberg@thestar.com.my, 10/9/2010

THE seriously ill are more susceptible to death during the Phor Thor or Hungry Ghost month, according to spiritual healer Master Ong Q Leng.

Ong, 34, said in the recently concluded seventh lunar month, a few of her patients, who were on the road to recovery, simply gave up and succumbed to their illnesses rather than burden their loved ones who had to care for them.

“One patient was progressing well. The colour had returned to her cheeks but she had a change of heart and told her daughter who was bathing her one morning to hurry up as ‘they’ were waiting for her.

“She suddenly passed on in the middle of her bath,” said Ong, who also noted that there had been many cases of murder and suicide during the period.

She said those, who had seriously ill loved ones, should provide them with more love and care during the seventh month.

“You can tell that it is time for them to depart if they can no longer eat and sleep, the face has turned pale and yellowish, and the eyes are lifeless,” she added.

The Hungry Ghost month had always been a busy time for Ong, who offers services of healing, spiritual cleansing, feng shui tips and general consultation.

“One client sought my services after friends spotted two young children in the back seat of her car. It turned out that she had two previous abortions and the boy and girl spirits were her two children.”

Ong said spirits were at their most powerful during the seventh month but those released from the gates of hell were not harmful.

“The harmful spirits are the wandering ghosts that roam the earth freely throughout the year.”
During the Hungry Ghost month, she said it was best that children, aged below five, stayed indoors after 7pm, and adults low on luck did the same after 9pm.

She also advised people not to consume too much alcohol or speak nonsense during the seventh month, and not to quarrel or fight at home as that would attract an “audience” to watch the drama.

“Don’t scold but be more loving to your spouse and children, and smile more to avoid misfortune,” she said.

Ong also advised those who observed the Hungry Ghost festival to burn smaller offerings for their departed loved ones during that month.

“When you burn too many things, it will attract greedy evil spirits who come and snatch the offerings from your loved ones.

“Smaller amounts attract less attention and that means more chances that your loved ones will receive them.

“You only need to burn offerings for someone once a year and it should be done during the day, that is between 8.30am and 7.30pm,” she said