Question: I will be moving to a new house when it coincides with the seventh lunar month. However, some old folks in the family think this is unwise. What should I take note of? Or is there actually nothing to fear?
Answer: According to Buddhist teachings, wandering spirits are around us ‘all’ the time now – thus the term ‘wandering spirits’. The seventh lunar month is not particularly special, as there are not more spirits during this period, since the ‘gates of hell’ never open for ‘holidays’, as hell-beings’ negative karma is so strong that they do not get holidays, just as human prisoners in our world do not have ‘off’ days. Hell-beings are different from the spirit world (of hungry ghosts and wandering spirits), which we share the same world with.
The seventh lunar month is ‘special’ only in the sense that humans hold festivals of making offerings to wandering spirits at Buddhist temples and other non-Buddhist ceremonies. If there is congregation of spirits partaking of offerings, it should be at these places, and not at new homes, especially since there are no special offerings there. If there are wandering spirits, they would be those who happen to be there or passing by. This might happen occasionally according to karmic affinity, but not particularly during any time of the year.
For peace of mind, you can set up a shrine and do some simple chanting at the house to bless the house upon moving in. You can just Nianfo (chant ‘Amituofo’ – the name of Amitabha Buddha in Chinese) sincerely (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW6JdI-FaLM) with the intention of guiding any unseen being possibly around to do the same wholeheartedly, to move on, to reach Amituofo’s Pure Land. You can also collect blessed water at Buddhist temples for sprinkling around the house while chanting. Chanting should be done ‘live’; not just by playing a recording as it lacks the power of blessing. To truly understand the meaning of Nianfo, so as to practise it well, it is best to learn about the Pure Land teachings systematically through courses.
Related Course:
The 48 Great Vows Of Amituofo: Boundless Blessings For This Life & The Next (4th Run)
https://thedailyenlightenment.com/2014/05/the-48-great-vows-of-amituofo-boundless-blessings-for-this-life-the-next-4th-run
Related Articles:
How To Help The Deceased With Nianfo
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Amituofo/conversations/messages/517
Where To Set Up Shrine?
https://thedailyenlightenment.com/2011/07/where-to-set-up-shrine
