High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The segaki ("feeding the hungry ghosts") is a ritual of Japanese Buddhism, traditionally performed to stop the suffering of the gaki, ghosts tormented by insatiable hunger. Alternatively, the ritual forces the gaki to return to their portion of hell or keeps the spirits of the dead from falling into the realm of the gaki. Today, the ceremony also gives participants an opportunity to remember those who have died and to symbolically sever ties with past sins. The segaki may be performed at any time, but it is traditionally part of the O-Bon, a festival held every year in July or August to remember the dead. Due to Western influence, however, the ceremony is today often held around Halloween and Mexican Day of the Dead, which are similarly devoted to remembrance of the deceased, and though less emphasized in the modern period, the potential placation of their spirits.
