Transcript Document

Festival of the dead
Festival of the dead
• July 15 (Lunar calendar), or August 15 (Solar calendar)
is celebrated in Japan as "Bon" or Urabon, The Feast of
Lanterns, especially by the Japanese Buddhists. It is
said that during the year, on this day only, the iron pot in
hell is opened for the deceased. Buddhist services are
held at temples and private houses for ancestors,
relatives and friends who died in the past, and
particularly for those who passed away during the past
year. The particular feature of Obon is the offering of
various foodstuff to the deceased, and of course all
those who as emble for the service will partake of special
food prepared for the day. This is because Obon
originated in a Buddhist legend.
Festival of the dead
• Obon used to be quite an important social
event, and for attending the family Obon
service, such persons engaged in works
away from their native places invariably
returned home. To factory and shop
apprentices or household maids, Obon
and January 15 were only two holidays in
the whole year, when they were permitted
to return home to their parents.
Festival of the dead
• Eager to guide properly the spirits of ancestors
on the day, it is customary to light lanterns at all
houses. Some such lanterns were formerly very
elaborate, especially made for the occasion. The
most important feature of the service is the
offering of food. Therefore to the ancestors are
offered rice, vegetables, fruits, cakes, sweets
and flowers. There are prepared special foods to
be served to invited guests and friends. It is the
spirit of giving food to fellow people that lies
under this religious service. It is religious day,
but also quite a joyful social occasion.
Festival of the dead
• In the Hiroshima area, coloured paper
lanterns are lighted at the ancestral
graves. The white ones are for those who
passed away during Aug. 16 of the
previous year till Aug. 15 of this year
Festival of the dead
• "Toro-Nagashi" or lantern floating is the
picturesque ending to the Obon service.
To guide the ancestral spirits back to the
other world, little floats are lighted with
candles and floated down rivers or on the
sea. People eagerly watch them float
down the river or carried by the wind far
away from the shore.
Festival of the dead
• "Bon-Odori" or Bon dance, a religious folk dance, was
originally given to comfort the spirit of the dead during
the o-bon season. It is enjoyed by men, women, and
even little children. It differs naturally according to
locality, as each district has its own songs and styles of
dancing. Recently many modern or even foreign songs
and dances have been introduced to these programmes.
It is generally held in temple or shrine compounds sea or
river shores or other convenient public places. A raised
tower-like stand is erected and around the stand the
people dance all night with the music.
Modern day Japan
Hiruki Family Tomb, Fukue, Nagasaki
Prefecture, Japan
In Japan, in accordance with Buddhist
tradition, the bones of a deceased
family member are placed in an
individual urn and kept with those of
their ancestors in a family tomb
(ohaka). Living family members visit
the tomb on Ohigan (Spring and Fall
Equinox) and during Obon (Festival of
the Dead) in the summertime. Most
Japanese people live in big cities
these days, and must travel long
distances to their ohaka, which tend to
be in smaller cities and towns in the
countryside. In families whose
members live far away, not everyone
can make it back to their ohaka for
Obon every summer to pay their
respects.
Modern day Japan
• Every family member tries to
make it back to the family tomb
at some point during the week,
so they can pay their respects
to their ancestors. It is one of
the few times in the year that
grandparents, aunts, uncles,
cousins, and grandchildren
can get together. Most
Japanese don't live anywhere
near their family tomb these
days, so this means that every
mode of transportation is very
busy during this time. Avoid
travelling in Japan during this
week if at all possible, unless
you like crowds and line ups!
Modern day Japan
• August is a hot, humid month
in Japan The most comfortable
of the socially acceptable
things to wear is a yukata, a
colorful light cotton kimono.
The part of obon that the
younger children (okay, AND
the older "children") enjoy the
most is lighting hanabi
(firecrackers/fireworks, literally
"flowery fire"). There is a
constant hissing, popping and
cracking over the course of the
evening.
Modern day Japan
• As the evening
progresses, the
lanterns glow ever
more brightly. Once
the incense and
candles burn out, the
lanterns are packed
up and taken home,
where chilled suika
(watermelon) is
waiting!
Mexico
Mexico