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泉原Obon is a shortened form of Ullambana (Japanese: 于蘭盆會 or 盂蘭盆會,(1) Obon:Urabon'e). It is Sanskrit for "hanging upside down" and implies great

A Buddhist festival called the "Bon" Festivalsuffering. The Japanese believe they should ameliorate the suffering of the(2) Obon Sutra:"Urabon."

It is said that Segaki of Mokuren originated from 'Urabon-e-kyo Sutra. Buddhist

In Japan, Obon (お盆) or just Bon (盆) is a kind of Buddhist custom to honor

tradition held that the sutra was translated from the Sanskrit by Dharmarakṣa.

the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist-Confucian custom has evolved"Recent scholarship however, acknowledges that this sutra was not originally

into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family

composed in India but in China in the mid-sixth century."

places and visit and clean their ancestors' graves, and when the spirits of(3) Bon odori:ancestors are supposed to revisit the household altars, which has been

On the evening of the 16th, the day after the Bon festival, men and women of allcelebrated in Japan for more than 1,000 years and traditionally includes aages get together in the precincts of a shrine or other places and dance the Bondance, known as Bon-Odori.

Odori.

The Ullambana Sutra , a Mahayana sutra, consists in a brief discourse given

Though this also depends on the region, there are special

by the Gautama Buddha principally to the monk Maudgalyayana (Japaneserituals, for example, households experiencing Hatsubon hang allMokuren) on the practice of filial piety. In the Ullambana Sutra, the Buddha

white Chochin (Japanese paper lantern) at the gate to welcome

instructs his disciple Maudgalyayana on how to obtain liberation for his

the spirits of their ancestors.

mother, who had been reborn into a lower realm, by making food offerings to
the sangha on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. This practice is thebasis of the East Asian Ghost festival, including the Bon Festival, in honorof one's ancestors.

During the Bon festival in Japan,

The festival of Obon lasts for three days; however its starting date varies

the fires ignited at the entrance

within different regions of Japan. When the lunar calendar was changed toof one's house, the flames of

the Gregorian calendar at the beginning of the Meiji era, the localities inwhich are meant to both welcome

Japan reacted differently and this resulted in three different times of Obon.

back the spirits of the dead as"Shichigatsu Bon" (Bon in July) is based on the solar calendar and iswell as see off spirits of thosecelebrated around 15 July in eastern Japan (Kantō region such as Tokyo,

who have died.

Yokohama and the Tohoku region), coinciding with Chūgen.

"Hachigatsu Bon" (Bon in August) is based on the lunar calendar, iscelebrated around the 15th of August and is the most commonly celebrated

Offerings in the shapes of animal vehicles on thetime. "Kyu Bon" (Old Bon) is celebrated on the 15th day of the seventh

shelf that is set up at the time of the bon festival formonth of the lunar calendar, and so differs each year. "Kyu Bon" isthe spirits of the deadcelebrated in areas like the northern part of the Kantō region, Chūgoku
region, Shikoku, and the Okinawa Prefecture. These three days are notlisted as public holidays but it is customary that people are given leave.

The festival ends with Toro Nagashi, orthe floating of lanterns. Toro (lanterns)

Bon Odori:of wooden frames covered with paper

Bon Odori originates from the story of Maha Maudgalyayana (Mokuren), a

are set adrift in a ceremony calleddisciple of the Buddha, who used his supernatural powers to look upon his

Toro-nagashi; and Chochin on small

deceased mother. He discovered she had fallen into the Realm of Hungry

boats are floated down a river in theGhosts and was suffering. Greatly disturbed, he went to the Buddha andShoryo-nagashi ceremony.

asked how he could release his mother from this realm. Buddha instructed
him to make offerings to the many Buddhist monks who had just completed

A temporary tower-style structure set up in

their summer retreat, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. Thea field to be used as a special place for a

disciple did this and, thus, saw his mother's release. He also began to see thefestival or a Bon Festival Dancetrue nature of her past selflessness and also the many sacrifices that she
had made for him. The disciple got happy to know that his mother was
released from the suffering, and then danced with joy. From this dance of joy
comes Bon Odori or "Bon Dance", in which ancestors and their sacrifices are
remembered and appreciated.
As Obon occurs in the heat of the summer, participants traditionally wear
yukata, or light cotton kimonos. Many Obon celebrations include a hugecarnival with rides, games, and summer festival food like watermelon.
The festival ends with Toro Nagashi, or the floating of lanterns. Paperlanterns are illuminated and then floated down rivers symbolically signaling
the ancestral spirits' peaceful return to the world of the dead. This ceremony
usually culminates in a fireworks display.

People enjoying Bon Odori at a school
As a matsuri influenced by Buddhism andhaving a strong character of syncretizationof Shinto with Buddhism, Bon Festival
Dance incorporating a native ancestor
worship or Nenbutsu-odori dance (a dancewith an invocation to the Buddha) with amagic of kotodama (soul or power of language) is named, and is conductive toThe style of Bon Dance varies in many aspects from region to region. EachUrabon-e Festival (a Festival of the Dead or Buddhist All Souls' day, aroundregion has a local dance, as well as different music. The music can be songs

July or August 15, depending on local customs) syncretized.

specifically pertinent to the spiritual message of Obon, or local “min'yo” folksongs. Consequently, the Bon dance looks and sounds different from region
to region. The dance of a region can depict the area's history andspecialization.
For example, the movements of the dance of the Tankō Bushi (the "coalmining song") of old Miike Mine in Kyushu show the movements of miners,i.e. digging, cart pushing, lantern hanging, etc. All dancers perform thesame dance sequence in unison.
Modern arrangements of Tankō Bushi replace the lyric "Miike Tankō" with"uchi no oyama," which in traditional mining dialect means "our coal mine"or "our coal pit," as Miike Mine is no longer in service, and the song is played
at Bon dances outside of Kyūshū.

the Tankō Bushi (the "coal mining song") of old Miike Mine in Kyushu
Japanese:

Rough English translation:

Tsuki ga deta deta
Tsuki ga deta, a yoi yoi
Miike Tankō no ue ni deta
Anmari entotsu ga takai no de
Sazoya otsukisan kemutakaro

The moon, has come out,Oh, the moon is out, heave ho (kakegoe)Over Miike Coal Mine has the moon come out.
The chimney is so high,I wonder if the moon chokes on the smoke...
Heave Ho!

Sa no yoi yoi

The Bon festival dance was originally a Buddhist event.