Obon, Victoria, BC
Aug 15, 2014 18:04:46 #
This last Sunday, Aug. 10th, I attended a Buddhist Japanese Obon Festival, or Festival of Lanterns, in Victoria, BC.
I first heard about this particular Obon Festival through the Victoria Old Cemeteries Society. I join in as many of their events as I can whenever I'm on Vancouver Island. I only knew the basics of what the ceremony entailed, but never expected it to be so emotionally touching and joyful.
Obon is a period of days every year when families gather at grave sites to honor their ancestors. The marker stones are scrubbed, the area around cleaned and groomed, fresh flowers are placed and incense burned. A blessing by a Buddhist monk is followed by a celebration of dancing, entertainment and food.
After Pearl Harbor, Japanese-Canadians were forcibly removed from the island and sent to the mainland, most to detention camps. The majority never returned. Those buried in Victoria's Ross Bay Cemetery, dating from the mid-1800's to the outbreak of WWII, have no descendants to perform the Obon ceremonies. The present day Japanese community has taken on the responsibility. Since the late 1990's, they have cataloged the burials in the Japanese section, replaced damaged and missing stones, erected the Kakehashi (Bridge) Memorial Stone, and, since 2011, have performed the Obon rituals, with the festivities held at the Ross Bay Villa, an historic home across the way from the cemetery.
Below are just a few of the 20 photos I have posted in an album on Flickr with some explanatory captions. I encourage you to view the album. I hope my photos convey even a fraction of what I felt that day.
Obon Album
I first heard about this particular Obon Festival through the Victoria Old Cemeteries Society. I join in as many of their events as I can whenever I'm on Vancouver Island. I only knew the basics of what the ceremony entailed, but never expected it to be so emotionally touching and joyful.
Obon is a period of days every year when families gather at grave sites to honor their ancestors. The marker stones are scrubbed, the area around cleaned and groomed, fresh flowers are placed and incense burned. A blessing by a Buddhist monk is followed by a celebration of dancing, entertainment and food.
After Pearl Harbor, Japanese-Canadians were forcibly removed from the island and sent to the mainland, most to detention camps. The majority never returned. Those buried in Victoria's Ross Bay Cemetery, dating from the mid-1800's to the outbreak of WWII, have no descendants to perform the Obon ceremonies. The present day Japanese community has taken on the responsibility. Since the late 1990's, they have cataloged the burials in the Japanese section, replaced damaged and missing stones, erected the Kakehashi (Bridge) Memorial Stone, and, since 2011, have performed the Obon rituals, with the festivities held at the Ross Bay Villa, an historic home across the way from the cemetery.
Below are just a few of the 20 photos I have posted in an album on Flickr with some explanatory captions. I encourage you to view the album. I hope my photos convey even a fraction of what I felt that day.
Obon Album
Aug 15, 2014 20:30:58 #
Thanks for the post, I just viewed the Obon Album, and found it very interesting. What a great colorful way to celebrate one's ancestors.
Aug 15, 2014 21:05:43 #
Thank you for looking. I know that, in the past, Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland has had similar events by the Chinese community, though I have never checked them out as I did this one.
Aug 16, 2014 21:41:27 #
Aug 16, 2014 23:47:12 #
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