This three-day festival celebrates the return of the spirits of the ancestors to the family home. The spirits are then sent back to the other world via paper lanterns set adrift on the water to guide the spirits back. Bon-Odori is the traditional dance performed during Obon. This is the traditional date of the festival, called Kyu Bon (“Old Bon”), falling on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month. Tokyo celebrates one month earlier, in mid-July.

Interesting Facts

• This festival is similar to Western Christianity’s All Souls’ Day, although Obon is a three-day celebration.
• Food plays a crucial role in Obon festivities, with specific dishes prepared and offered to honor the ancestors. One such traditional offering is “Shōjin Ryōri,” a type of vegetarian cuisine originally developed in Buddhist monasteries.
• Many families prepare a special altar called “Shoryodana” or “Spirit Shelf” filled with fruits, vegetables, and other foods, believing that the spirits consume the essence of these offerings, thus connecting the living with their ancestors through the act of sharing a meal.