CaliToday (07/9/2025): Chaotic and frenzied scenes erupted on Phung Hung Street in Ho Chi Minh City as massive crowds gathered for the traditional "cúng cô hồn" ceremony, an annual ritual that marks the culmination of the Ghost Month. The street became a tumultuous sea of people, all vying to snatch money and other offerings thrown into the air, creating a spectacle of desperation and excitement that brought traffic to a standstill.
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| "The 15th day of the 7th lunar month is considered the most significant full moon of the year, also known by other names such as 'Wandering Souls' Day' (Xá tội vong nhân) and the 'Vu Lan Festival'. In Ho Chi Minh City specifically and in Southern Vietnam generally, in addition to the main customs, the practice of 'snatching offerings for wandering souls' (giật cô hồn) frequently takes place throughout this month." |
The event is a key practice during the seventh month of the lunar calendar, widely known as the Ghost Month. According to traditional beliefs, this is when the gates of the underworld open, allowing wandering and hungry spirits ("cô hồn") to roam the earth. To appease these souls and prevent them from bringing bad luck, families and businesses prepare elaborate offerings of food, incense, votive paper, and small amounts of real cash.
On Phung Hung Street, a major thoroughfare in the city's vibrant Cholon (Chinatown) area, businesses laid out large tables of offerings. Once the ceremonial prayers were complete, the offerings, including banknotes of various small denominations, were tossed into the waiting crowd.
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| "Many people had also gathered in advance, waiting to scramble for the 'ghost month' offerings." |
What followed was an intense scramble. Throngs of people, including children, teenagers, and adults, pushed, shoved, and climbed over one another in a frantic effort to grab as much as they could. The air was filled with shouts and the sight of hands reaching for the bills fluttering down from above.
For participants, this is more than just a grab for free money. There is a deeply rooted cultural belief that snatching one of these offerings, which have been blessed for the spirits, is a way to take on good luck and ward off the misfortune that wandering souls might carry. The act of "giật" (snatching) is believed to symbolically take away the bad luck intended for the spirits.
While the "cúng cô hồn" money scramble is a long-standing tradition and an annual spectacle in Ho Chi Minh City, it also raises concerns about public safety and order. The chaotic scenes often lead to minor scuffles and significant traffic disruption.
Nevertheless, for many of the city's residents, the event remains a vivid and important part of their cultural and spiritual life, marking the end of the Ghost Month with a unique and boisterous tradition that blends spiritual reverence with earthly fervor.
