Obon in Nara

Like I've mentioned before, Summer time is a time full of festival and celebration. One of the most recent celebrations is Obon. Obon is a Buddhist event to remember one's ancestors. It is believed that during this time, the ancestors' spirits come back to visit this world. Many things usually happen during Obon like visiting grave sites, lighting lanterns to guide the spirits and setting out offerings for them. Also many people don't have work on these days in mid August so they can visit their families or ancestors' grave sites. The time of Obon is dependent on the Lunar calendar and celebration time varies from region to region. Today I was lucky enough to experience the last day of Obon for my are in Nara. It just so happened that today was the beginning of my summer holiday and only had to be at work for half a day. A few weeks ago while teaching at Hirano Kindergarten, I had met Ms. Kiyoko and Ms. Maiyumi as they were assigned to help me with my lesson plan for that day. They are Japanese educators and spoke very good English. When we first met, I got the chance to speak with them about school, teaching, and also about eachother. It was very easy to speak with them and also very interesting. So by the end of our first meeting, I had exchange contact information with Ms. Maiyumi whom later shared it with Ms. Kiyoko. Since then, they have expressed to me great excitement to meet and speak again. It is very common for Japanese English speakers to want to converse with Native English speakers. They very seldom get the chance to, so in this case it was good for them but also for me since this way, I could learn about Japanese culture.

So on this day, Ms. Kiyoko and Ms. Maiyumi had extended an invitation to get together and see the ending lantern event for Obon in Nara City. Excited and free of plans, I immediately took them up on the offer. Ms. Kiyoko is part of the Nara Guide Club so she is very knowledgable about landmarks in Nara City. She had told me the event would take place at Todaiji Temple. I had been to this temple before but was excited for the second time because now I would be with a guide who could tell me much more about what I was looking at.

So this afternoon, the three of us met up at Nara Station and were filled with excitement to see eachother. The genuine joy of these two ladies really made me happy. They were so excited to see me it was so sincere and humbling.

It was still a bit early to head to Todaiji when we first got together so the three of us spent some time at a cafe talking about anything. Conversation topics ranged from family to home cities to personal relations. You may think it is odd for me to hang out with women so much older, but they are so full of energy and joy, you forget the age gap. It is common for older women in Kansai area to be very loud and talkative. Ms. Kiyoko is a perfect example of this. Just her energy, laugh and genuine excitement is contagious and the new experience was really great to be around.

After the cafe, we headed into Nara park to see the lantern light walk ways. Ms. Kiyoko informed us that each lantern had a name and wish on it. The name was that of people who donated a certain amount. After walking through the park we came across a large shrine which had 2,000 stone lanterns coming up to it and 1,000 brass lanterns inside. We didn't get the chance to go inside because of the long line but it was still very interesting to see.

The weather was a bit grey this evening and after heading away from the shrine it started to rain. Luckily, I had just purchased an umbrella the day before and actually brought it with me!! Ms. Kiyoko and Ms. Maiyumi are the sweetest ladies. It really touched me when they commented about the weather saying, "It is raining but it doesn't bother us because we get to be here with you." I felt really special and genuinely appreciated.

It was becoming night fall now so we all decided to get a bite to eat before heading and seeing the big lantern display at Todaiji. Dinner was at a nearby cafe where the specialty was a dish that was cooked in a traditional rice cooker. The meal was delicious and conversation light.

After dinner, we closed out our bill, which they were both so generous in paying for, and headed to Todaiji. There were many people out this night despite the wet weather. Coming up to the temple, I could already see many lanterns around the large structure. These lanterns had a wooden frame and paper faces, with names, places and wishes also written on them. Since this was the last day of Obon in Nara, I believe the lanterns are light so the spirits are guided back to Heaven safely. Seeing Todaiji surrounded by these flickering lanterns was really great. Ms. Kiyoko was very knowledgable and a great guide in better understanding the architect, purpose, statues, and customs of the temple.

The afternoon and evening was so refreshing. It was a great experience for me to be around new friends and also learn so much more about Japanese culture. The three of us had such a great time, we agreed that a monthly get together needed to happen. Looking forward to September!!



xx
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