Hong Kong puts hi-tech spin on Hungry Ghost Festival to breathe new life into old traditions

Organisers announce first Yu Lan Cultural Festival since end of pandemic as city’s Chiu Chow community prepares to mark traditional period for appeasing spirits

Federation of Hong Kong Chiu Chow Community Organisations promises blend of traditional practices, innovative technology and popular culture to draw visitors

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This year’s event will also mark the return of the “ghost grappling competition”, where participants need to catch as many “offerings” as possible. Photo: Harvey Kong

Published: 8:09pm, 16 Aug 2023Updated: 10:41pm, 16 Aug 2023

Hong Kong’s largest celebration of the Hungry Ghost Festival will return after a three-year hiatus and include innovative activities such as an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot and a role-playing game to bring in young visitors.

The Federation of Hong Kong Chiu Chow Community Organisations on Wednesday said the event would be held in early September at Victoria Park and hoped the city’s young generation would attend to learn more about the festival.

“We hope that Yu Lan Cultural Festival activities, where we combine elements from the present and our traditional practices through the use of innovative technology and popular culture, will be able to attract young people to learn about our culture,” said Anven Wu Yim-chung, the group’s deputy director.

The festival takes place during the seventh lunar month, with celebrations reaching their peak during the middle of the period.

A cornerstone of the festival is venerating ancestors through rites and burning offerings in the street to appease wandering souls, as the period is traditionally viewed as a brief window for spirits to roam the living world.

The festival is also highly prized by the local Chiu Chow community, an ethnic group that traces its roots back to mainland China’s Guangdong province.

The federation’s annual event, which was introduced in 2015, has not been held since 2019 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Wu on Wednesday said organisers had decided to introduce more innovative elements this year, acknowledging that traditional activities such as reciting scripture and Chiu Chow opera performances might not be enticing for some participants.