The Kohala Jodo Mission in Kapaau will celebrate its annual Bon Odori Festival at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 11. The public is invited to participate in this joyous event honoring the lives of departed loved ones.
The Kohala Jodo Mission in Kapaau will celebrate its annual Bon Odori Festival at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 11. The public is invited to participate in this joyous event honoring the lives of departed loved ones.
Come and enjoy the delicious food, music, dancing and taiko drumming. Visit Designs by Moira for happi coats, decorative hand towels, hand bags, all-occasion cards, and other hand crafts.
An important part of O-Bon is the observance of the “Hatsubon,” which commemorates the first anniversary of a friend or loved one’s passing. Each year, bon dances are dedicated to those who passed away since the prior O-Bon.
The mission celebrates its third annual lantern ceremony this year, in conjunction with the O-Bon Festival. This ceremony is meant to give people a special time to remember, reflect and offer gratitude to those who passed on. Although O-Bon is a Buddhist celebration, the mission invites people of all religions to participate because we all have loved ones who passed away and it’s nice for us to honor them.
Lantern banners are decorated with silhouettes of Japanese lanterns, which represent not only the physical lighting of the pathway for our ancestors as they make their way home during the O-Bon season, but also for their continued spiritual enlightenment. The banners include space for people to write messages of remembrances, gratitude and prayers for deceased loved ones.
After O-Bon, the banners are removed and handled in a spiritually respectful way under the guidance of the Rev. Wajira Wansa. At a later date, Wansa and church members will give the banners their final blessing before they are burned.
This year’s lantern ceremony will begin with the blessing and raising of the banners. The ceremony also will include a tribute to the men and women who died in military service, making the ultimate sacrifice defending our country and others so we can live in freedom. The ceremony also honor current military service members, veterans and their families.
The mission again is offering banners free to all who want to participate, but contributions are welcomed. In addition to the free ones, some larger decorative banners will be available for purchase. All banners will be distributed on a first-come/first-served basis until they run out. The booth will open at 5 p.m.