The lunar July is coming. The Ghost Festival on 15th lunar July is important to the Chinese Singaporeans. It originated from Taoism, and the people believe that July is a period to sacrifice relatives and mourn ancestors. Chinese people either pray ancestors at home; or burn joss paper in open spaces around HDB flats to express condolences to their ancestors.
However, the religious activities may bring about environmental pollution. For example, the burning of a large amount of incense candles and paper will cause smog and turbid air; burning residues will increase garbage and damage environment.
The Taoist Federation (Singapore) exhorts all our believers: Burn incense sticks and paper responsibly.
1.It is no true that incense paper is burned the more the better. It should be done according to the situation.
2.The incense sticks must be burned in the correct way and safely.
3.Please clean up the venue after the worship.
Taoism is a religion that focus on protecting the environment. The TFS exhorts believers to worship ancestors and burn joss paper reasonably by the three principles above.
