文章難易度
全球節慶
Chris, Antony
Each summer in Japan, there comes a time for ancestors to be honored. It is believed that the ghosts of one’s relatives will return to the family gravesites and altars. Families gather together, clean the graves, make offerings of food and drink, and take part in centuries-old rituals. This is the tradition of the Bon Festival.
The roots of the Bon Festival can be traced to China’s Ghost Festival. This is a Buddhist tradition that is meant to release the dead from any suffering they may experience in the afterlife. It is said that a follower of Buddha was told to prepare offerings in order to save his late mother from suffering. When he saw that it actually worked, he did a little dance because he was so happy.
That dance is called the Bon Odori and is still practiced today. During the dance, people usually form a circle around a yagura , which is a kind of wooden stage. Folk musicians get on the stage, and as they play, people will move around them. In some regions, the dancers will act out scenes from daily life. In Kyushu, where coal mining was common, dancers would pretend to push carts and dig into the earth. A ritual fire, Okuribi , then guides the ghosts back to the afterlife.