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On which day of the year are you most likely to see a ghost? You’re probably thinking Halloween but actually that might not be the case.
Here are several theories-
Search data from the last few years for the search term “is my house haunted” and we found some unexpected results. It seems that while Halloween is generally the night when most people turn to the internet in fear for help trying to confirm if their house is haunted, September is actually a much more active month than October. The September spike in paranormal searches ranges from the 2nd through until the 16th, usually with a couple of spikes in the month each year. According to this data was Saturday, September 15th, 2018. Although there didn’t seem to be anything in particular about that day which should have resulted in the increase. We can’t even blame a full moon for the increase, as it was only a quarter moon on this date. In some parts of the world September is as significant when it comes to the spirits of the dead as October is in the Western world. In China, the seventh lunar month is the Ghost Month. This usually begins in August but lasts into September. In 2018 Ghost Month was August 11th until September 9th, finishing just a few days before the mysterious September 15th spike. It is said that on the first day of Ghost Month the gates of hell are open and the spirits of the dead can visit us until the gate is closed on the 30th day of the month.1
September is often cited as the “scariest” month for businesses and investors because of a historical market phenomenon known as the “September Effect”.
Months…
For some reason though the months of September, October, and November are mostly notorious for the unexplained and mysterious. While October is commonly cited, some discussions on forums mention that months like November, January, or February can feel “scarier” or more “haunted” due to increased cold and darkness.
Why is August called the ghost month?
“Ghost Month” refers primarily to the seventh month of the lunar calendar in several East and Southeast Asian cultures (most notably Chinese, Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia), and August is often called “Ghost Month” in places where the lunar seventh month usually falls partly or wholly within the Gregorian month of August. The name and customs come from a mix of folk religion, Taoist/Buddhist beliefs, and ancient popular practice. Key points:
- Calendar basis
- Ghost Month is the lunar 7th month (roughly mid-July to mid-August on the Gregorian calendar, varying each year). Because it commonly overlaps August, English-language discussion often calls August “Ghost Month,” but the underlying festival follows the lunar calendar, not the solar month.
- Core belief
- The gates of the underworld (the realm of the dead) are believed to open during the lunar seventh month, allowing spirits (including ancestors and wandering ghosts) to return to the human world. The living must perform rituals to soothe, feed, and show respect to both household ancestors and hungry or lost spirits.
- Major observances and rituals
- Ancestor offerings: food, incense, and paper money (“joss paper”) burned to provide for deceased relatives.
- Public and private altars: households and temples set up offerings; businesses may display offerings to placate spirits.
- The Hungry Ghost Festival (Zhongyuan Jie / Yu Lan Pen) falls on the 15th day of the lunar seventh month and is the high point for ceremonies.
- Street operas, puppet shows, and paper effigies: nighttime performances are held to entertain spirits; elaborate paper items (houses, cars, clothes) are burned.
- Rituals to prevent bad luck: avoiding major life events (marriage, moving houses, starting business), avoiding night travel, not swimming in some communities.
- Floating lanterns or releasing offerings on water to guide spirits back.
- Cultural functions
- Social cohesion: communal rituals reinforce family and neighborhood ties.
- Moral and social order: offerings and stories encourage filial piety and proper treatment of the dead.
- Risk management: taboos reduce exposure to hazards (less night travel, fewer risky activities).
- Regional variations
- China: Zhongyuan Festival emphasizes filial offerings; some regions stage elaborate public rites.
- Taiwan and Hong Kong: strong public observance with street performances and large-scale burning of paper offerings; many businesses alter hours or practices.
- Singapore and Malaysia: multiethnic urban practices, public petitions and temple events; authorities sometimes regulate large public rituals for safety.
- Vietnam: Tết Trung Nguyên / Vu Lan has overlapping ancestor-focused customs but different names and emphases.
- Modern adaptations and controversies
- Urbanization and public safety have moved many rituals from streets to temples or designated sites; local governments regulate bonfires and pyrotechnics.
- Commercialization: tourism, staged performances and retail of paper offerings and lanterns are now industries.
- Environmental and legal concerns: burning joss paper and releasing lanterns have led to pollution and fire-safety regulations; alternative eco-friendly offerings are emerging.
- Practical understanding
- August is called “Ghost Month” when the lunar 7th month falls largely in August; the phenomenon is cultural, calendrical, and ritual-based rather than supernatural. The month combines ancestor veneration with popular taboos meant to protect the living from misfortune attributed to restless spirits.
Sources and context reflect scholarship and popular practice through May 2024.2
La Luna – What’s the Moon got to do with it?
For centuries, the ethereal glow of a full moon hung high in the night sky has inspired wild and unusual tales, folklore and supernatural legends around the world.
From the howling transformations of werewolves to bizarre human behaviors, many strange occurrences have been attributed to the lunar cycle. The word “lunatic” itself comes from the Latin word “luna,” or moon.
According to Pennsylvania Paranormal Association director Mark Keyes, the moon and changing seasons will cause an increased frequency in paranormal activity.
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“Talking with clients and working with a lot of psychic mediums, and they all say there seems to be an increase in activity around the end of September [through December],” Keyes said.
“That would have to do with a lot of different elements, planetary elements, elements with the solar system, the moon, the sun and it’s a time when most spiritual people will say that the veil between our world and the spiritual world is a lot thinner and they can communicate better.”
Keyes is a retired state police detective who formed the Pennsylvania-based paranormal research group after other law enforcement officials expressed similar interests in investigating reports of hauntings and strange phenomena.
“I have to think it’s environmental, cosmological,” he said. “I think it has a lot to do with the place our moon is, and sun is, compared to the planet location at the time and the seasons.”
According to Keyes, the moon can influence the number or frequency of reports they get from clients as well.
“I also believe working with so many psychic mediums, that there’s a lot more activity, or a lot more psychic activity, they can definitely tune in and get a lot more information and report a lot more spiritual activity or haunted activity at haunted locations during full moons,” he added.
In addition, the full moon may also allow spirits to gain more of a presence as they manifest into our physical world, Keyes said.
“I think again it may enhance a ghost’s ability to physically manipulate stuff better or be seen better, if you will,” he said.
The investigations Keyes and the team usually conduct involve the spirits of dead human beings who have not passed on, he said.
“Most of the cases we work, again this is relying on a very credible psychic medium to give us the information, we end up working with a human-based spirit,” he added.
“Somebody who was alive, they died, and it’s generally something emotional or traumatic that keeps them at a place.”
According to Keyes, some of the deceased may not even be aware they have died, and it another reason for the paranormal activity that is reported.
“They’re there for a reason,” he said. “Sometimes they’re confused, they may not realize they’re dead, sometimes they’re locked in this dreamlike state that they’re just going through their life not questioning anything and not realizing they’re dead.”
In the instances where the activity is not related to a spirit that was once a living human, Keyes said it does not mean what is haunting a residence is necessarily an evil, inhuman entity.
“A lot of people believe there are nature-based creatures that are out there and sometimes they will get into people’s houses,” he added.
In addition to seeing an uptick in paranormal activity, Keyes said the lunar cycle may also influence human behavior as well.
“One thing for sure that almost any emergency responder or emergency room person 911 dispatchers will tell you is that the moon has a major impact on the living,” he said. “All kinds of weird behavior happen during full moons.”3
1.https://www.higgypop.com/
2.https://www.quora.com/Why-is-August-called-the-ghost-month
3.https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/paranormal-investigator-ghostly-activity-increases-during-lunar-cycle-changing-seasons/341863