LIGHTING THE LANTERNS FESTIVAL DRAWS DIVERSE REVELERS.Byline: Holly Edwards Staff Writer PACOIMA - Colorful dancers in Japanese kimonos, lively Taiko
For 51 years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time festival has been one of the largest Buddhist gatherings in the city, with nearly 4,000 visitors during the two-day celebration, festival organizers said. ``This is one of the biggest events of the year for this community,'' said Rev. Doei Fujii, head of the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. Hongwanji Buddhist Temple in Pacoima, which organizes the festival. ``So many people just come out for fun, dancing and eating.'' Held at the Japanese American Japanese Americans (日系アメリカ人 Nikkei Amerikajin Community Center in Pacoima, the festival is also one of the temple's largest fund-raising events of the year, Fujii said, adding that the temple raised over $30,000 during last year's festival. The Obon Festival, or the Feast of Lanterns Pacific Grove's Feast of Lanterns is an annual celebration, over 100 years old, of the legend of the Blue Willow, a traditional Chinese story. However, in Pacific Grove's version of the story, the fleeing couple turns into Monarch Butterflies (because Pacific Grove likes to be , is one of the major Buddhist observances in Japanese culture and is intended to be a time to honor the deceased with food and dancing, and to remember the importance of charitable giving. It is celebrated with a religious dance known as the bon, which began 2,500 years ago when a disciple disciple: see apostle. of Buddha danced with joy after seeing that his practice of selfless self·less adj. Having, exhibiting, or motivated by no concern for oneself; unselfish: "Volunteers need both selfish and selfless motives to sustain their interest" Natalie de Combray. giving had freed his deceased mother from suffering in the ``world of greed,'' said Fujii. Traditionally, the festival concludes with the lighting of lanterns to guide the dead back to the other world. However, the Obon Festival in Pacoima attracts many people who are not associated with the Buddhist faith, organizers said. For many, the festival is simply a chance to eat, dance and get reacquainted with old friends, said Marie Itaya, a longtime festival organizer. ``Some people only see each other once a year at the festival,'' Itaya said. ``It is wonderful to see everyone come together and be happy.'' CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- 2) Jenna Matsushita, 7, of Northridge, above, holds a bagged goldfish, her prize during the Obon Days Festival in Pacoima. At left, Akira Kinura uses clippers to trim an olive tree into a bonsai. Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer |
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