Ghosts and Spirits
 
鬼魂與靈魂
 
An ancient belief
Belief in ghosts is as old as mankind itself. In ancient cultures all around the world, people believed that the human soul left the body at the time of death and entered the afterlife. But if spirits go to live in the afterlife, why would they appear to the living in the form of ghosts? In Chinese tradition, the gates to the underworld open during Ghost Month—the seventh month of the lunar calendar—allowing the spirits of the dead to visit the world of the living for food and entertainment.
 
古代的信仰
 
自從有人類以來，就存在鬼魂的信仰。在世界各地的古文化中，人們相信在死亡之際，人的靈魂會離開身體，進入來世。但靈魂若是到來世生活，又為何要以鬼魂的形式出現在人間？中國傳統認為，陰間大門會在鬼月，也就是農曆七月開啟，讓往生者的靈魂到人間覓食和作樂。
 
In Christian tradition, the souls of the dead go to Heaven or Hell, where they remain for eternity. No wonder there are only two clear references to ghosts in the Bible. In the Old Testament, Saul, King of Israel, asks the ghost of Samuel for advice in defeating the Philistines; and in the New Testament, Jesus has to persuade people that’s he’s not a ghost after he rises from the dead. Yet while the Church discouraged belief in ghosts, there were so many sightings over the centuries that their efforts had little effect.