Lantern Float at the Byodo-In Temple Obon Festival

The soft white glow of hundreds of lanterns reflected in the quiet stillness of the Byodo-In Temple pond. The annual obon festival finishes with the floating flights and chanting, requiem, and Ave Maria. This year’s festival additionally celebrates the temple’s 50th anniversary and the 150th anniversary of the first Japanese immigrants arriving in Hawaii. The rains from earlier in the evening held off, and a summer breeze pushed the lanterns out and in like an otherworldly dance.

Eloise inched closer and closer to the dark water until she flailed and nearly fell in. The child-free people next to us communicated their annoyance in loud silence. I was thinking it might be time to leave, but the harpist struck up a transporting tune and Isaac turned to me and said loudly, “I miss Dad!” The silence around us thawed considerably. “Oh my gosh, people are going to think he died,” I thought. “Oh well, whatever it takes.”

We had a lovely time.

The lantern float completed the temple’s obon festival. My kids and their friends and I danced around the yagura tower in the middle with fans and enthusiasm. The drums accompanied the shrill festival flutes, and familiar tunes like “Tokyo Ondo” boomed from the speakers. SO FUN!

The last song was an energetic one I saw last week at the Kailua Obon Festival and don’t remember ever seeing in our area of Japan. It’s very simple—clap, two forward gestures, a double-handed reach toward the inner tower, then a hop back with both hands up, then finish and clap and begin again! Again! Again!! Lots more kids joined in this one, and the inner circle sped up faster and faster. Suddenly I realized none of the kids were dancing with me anymore. They weren’t even together. They were all dancing wildly in the frenzy of the inner circle. What a night!

Isaac raved about his delicious yakisoba, Eloise loved her shoyu chicken and rice, and my friend Jackie and I drank Hawaiian beer and watched the fun unfold.