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Watch part of the Seattle Obon festival. See the beautiful costumes and dances.
Kyoto, Japan hosts a well-known festival called Gozan no Okuribi on the final day of Obon. Five giant bonfires are lit on mountains that surround the city. Okuribi roughly translates to “send-off fire” in Japanese. Three fires are designed to look like kanji characters. The other two fires are shaped like a boat and a gate. The character in this photo means “large.”
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Making Connections
Text-to-Self
What Bon tradition did you find most interesting? Please explain your answer.
Text-to-Text
Have you read any books about holidays that honor family members who have passedon? If so, how were they similar to or different from Bon?
Text-to-World
Bon Odori dances tell the history of Japanese regions. What are other ways people present the history of places? How do you like to learn about history?