New-York tribune., 1905-12-31

bers its dead in a kind of universal All
y Saints Day and Memorial Day both IN one
The spirits of the departed, both bad and good
are supposed return to the scenes OF their former
lives and their successors make great preparations
for their reception The graves are decorated WITH
lanterns and flowers set upon them; the odor OF
incense fills the air where the offerings OF food
are made to the spirits
The summer visitors at the apaneSe seaside
resorts may have noticed lying about the beach at
certain seasons Of the year number OF articles the
use of which they may have been at loss to under
stand-white wands branches of feathery bamboo,
queer little objects made of vegetables. Cucum-
bers and egg-plants with legs made OF white wood
and tails of seaweed to represent some animal
as if children had been trying to construct Noah
Ark from the kitchen garden.
Before every house where there has been death
a fire of hemp-sta1ks is lighted, over which each
member of the family steps in order to ward OFT
diseases for the coming YEAR White Wands are
fixed in the sand in front Of the fire Tor the spirits
to use as canes; there also two OF the queer
little objects which streW the beach a few days
afterward The Cucumbers represent horses and
the egg-p1ants are upon which the spirits
will come riding home. The evening Of July I3
the fires are lighted, and priest is summoned to
say suitable prayers, inviting the spirits to enter
the house they occupied. Alter decent
interval the animals are taken up and placed on
the family shrine, with two long branches Of ban-
boo and the spirit is supposed to be comfortably
settled for its little visit with mortas.
In order to entertain the shadowy guest, offer
ings Of vermicelli, mlet, harcot-beans, salad and
pumpkin cut up into bits laid upon the shrine.
Instead of a meat fish course, which the spirits
do not relish, a whole squash is offered up These
offerings are left in their places the shrine until
the sixteenth day of the month, when they are
thrown into the sea, and the spirits are supposed
to return their places until the next yearly
festival
The food offered to the spirits is supposed never
to be eaten By mortalS because the visitors are
supposed have extracted all their essence. Some
enterprising individuals the cities, however are
SAID to 90 about the different houses where
distance from the renders il difficult to get
rid Of the offerings and collecting al they can carry
dispose of them at tca-houses, markets and other
places No one willingly eats the offerings to the
dead though the lotus leaves upon which the food IS
placed are sometimes saved, dried and eaten with
rice and are believed to prevent cure summer
ailments.
For the Obon Festival the family 'god-shef'
IS arranged with a figure OF Buddha IN the center,
before which censor IS kept burning. On each
side Of the figure the food IS placed with rice fruit,
pure water, vase Of flowers, candles and tablets
OF ancestors. Banners Of various Coors
ranged front of all and represent the five saints.
Green is the color of the first and bears the
character for beauty; the red is charity, deliver
ance and wisdom; white IS purity; black means
hunger and fear; and the yellow is famine. The