Salt Lake City Buddhists marked the 89th annual Obon Festival to celebrate their community and honor their ancestors on 12 July. The event was held at Salt Lake Buddhist Temple and a nearby street from 3–10 p.m. in Salt Lake City, Utah,
The festival is rooted in the story of Mokuren, a Buddhist disciple who was saddened to learn that his mother had been reincarnated in the realm of hungry ghosts, a place of great suffering and hardship. On hearing this, the Buddha encouraged Mokuren to make offerings to Buddhist monks on his mother’s behalf to alleviate her negative karma. By following the Buddha’s advice, Mokeren was able to rescue his mother from the realm of hungry ghosts. When he heard news of her release, Mokuren danced for joy. His dance became known as Bon Odori, and the Obon festival was born.
A modern understanding of the festival was given by festival chairman and board member of Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, Trey Imamura. “This is a joyous and happy time for us to remember all those who have passed on before us,” said Imamura. “It’s not a time to be sad that they’re no longer with us. It’s a time to be happy that we knew them and got to have them in our lives.” (Deseret News)
In addition to the Bon Odori dance, festival participants took part in Hawaiian dancing and taiko drumming, along with sampling a number of traditional Japanese dishes, such as beef and chicken teriyaki, grilled eggplant, somen, vegetable sushi, and musubi. Additionally, they were able to take guided tours of Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, and many festival goers chose to wear traditional Japanese garments, such as happi coats and kimonos.
Dance instructor and longtime festival participant Tracy Akimoto described why the festival was important: “It means so much to me because of my infant son. I feel closer to him while dancing at Obon. It’s kind of painful, but at the same time it’s a happy occasion.” (Deseret News)
In addition to celebrating Buddhist traditions, Obon serves as a connecting force between younger generations and the people and family members who participated in Obon before them. This was explained by the president of Salt Lake Buddhist Temple, Troy Watanabe: “Having our celebration in historic Japantown is very important to us. This is where our parents and grandparents held the festival. And we want to carry on that tradition to honor them and the sacrifices they made.” (Deseret News)
The Obon festival was organized by members of Salt Lake City’s Buddhist community. The seeds for the temple’s founding were planted in 1912 by Rev. Koyu Uchida when he traveled from San Francisco to Ogden, Utah, to perform memorial services for first-generation Japanese pioneers.
In the early days, the temple ministers had many roles in serving their congregations, including driving a school bus to pick up children for Sunday school, providing counseling services to congregants, and writing letters for illiterate miners.
During one especially difficult time, Rev. Chonen Terakawa was incarcerated in a detention facility along with many other Japanese community leaders during World War II. In his absence, his wife, Yoshie Terakawa, an ordained minister, conducted services and performed temple duties.
The temple’s present building was constructed in 1961, and features pews and a pulpit similar to a Christian church, in addition to traditional Jodo Shinshu shrines and an altar to Amida Buddha. The temple is part of the Buddhist Churches of America and it is affiliated with the Nishi Hongan-ji, a temple in Kyoto.
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Obon Festival, organized by Salt Lake City’s Buddhist community, returns Saturday (Deseret News)
History (Salt Lake Buddhist Temple)
