Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Culture Lesson 06: Taiwan’s Ghost Month
http://forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=152310
Activity 1 | Vocabulary and Expressions
Directions: Listen and repeat.
 unsealed [ˌʌsiːld]– not sealed, open
 departed [dɪˈpɑːrtɪd]- dead
 commemoration [kəˌmeməˈreɪʃn]– a celebration in which people honor the memory of
something or someone
 anything but [ˈeniθɪŋ bət]– not at all
 reincarnate [ˌriːɪnˈkɑːrneɪt]– to be reborn in another body
 appease [əˈpiːz]– to calm someone; to satisfy a need or demand
 conclude [kənˈkluːd]– to bring to an end
 mitigate [ˈmɪtɪɡeɪt]– to diminish
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Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Activity 2 | Dialogue
Directions: Read the dialogue aloud with your teacher.
It’s time to honor the dead in Taiwan. Ed is asking his friend, Wang, about this event.
Ed:
Is it true that you devote a whole month to worshipping your ancestors?
Wang:
Yes, the month is called the Ghost Month, or the Hungry Ghost Month. On the first day, the
gates of a temple are opened and this means that the Gates of Hell have been unsealed.
Simultaneously, the Gates of Heaven open. The souls of the departed return on Earth.
Ed:
What is special about this commemoration of the dead ancestors?
Wang:
One distinctive aspect is that we believe that the ghosts haunt our world at this time.
Ed:
That sounds quite scary. Aren’t you scared?
Wang:
Of course and we do anything but invite them in our homes. Actually, we hide our addresses
and leave our offerings outside of the house.
Ed:
Do you offer food and such every day?
Wang:
No, only at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of the month. It’s common to burn
paper money or representations of houses, clothes, etc. as it is believed that they need these
possessions in the afterlife, before they can reincarnate into something else.
Ed:
A lot of effort to appease the needs of these souls.
Wang:
On the 12 th day, lanterns are lit on the altar. The next day, there’s a parade of lanterns. This
is done so that the spirits see their way back. After that, we release lanterns on water.
Ed:
I bet the view looks amazing!
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Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Wang:
You should come and see it. You will also see dragon dancers and hear traditional music.
Ed:
Sounds like a plan!
Wang:
And to conclude this, on the 15 th day, priests pray and try to mitigate the suffering of the
dead. Some families gather to eat and leave some chairs empty for their dead relatives.
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Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Activity 3 | Filling the Blanks
Directions: Fill in the blanks below to complete the sentences.
1. The legend says the hero
into a lion.
2. The young boy had no idea he was a magician until his powers were
3. To
this essay, I will present the results of the experiment.
4. They prayed for the souls of the
5. He tried to
.
.
the conflict between the two teams, but he was unsuccessful.
6. Tomorrow is the day of the
of our fight for independence.
7. Even though his exams were approaching, he did
8. There is nothing that can
study for them!
his hunger for money and power.
unsealed
departed
commemoration
anything but
reincarnate
appease
conclude
mitigate
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Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Activity 4 | Understanding the Vocabulary
Directions: Make sentences with the following words: “mitigate”, “conclude”, “anything but”.
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Culture | Lesson 06 Taiwan’s Ghost Month _LEVEL 8_
Activity 5 | Free Conversation
Directions: Take turns with your teacher in answering the questions
1. How do you honor your ancestors in your country?
2. Do you believe in ghosts? Do you think they can harm you?
3. Why do you think it is important to remember our ancestors every year?
4. Do you think this is a sad holiday or a happy holiday? Why do you think so?
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