I spent part of the day visiting dead people in the forest, which is kind of odd since most them are already in the house.

Today I joined the in-laws and She Who Must Be Obeyed to celebrate Obon, or the Festival of the Dead. Obon is an ancient Bhuddist tradition that’s been celebrated in Japan for 500 years. Over time it has grown into a traditional family reunion time which isn’t that unusual–including departed ancestors, though, is a little unusual, at least to someone from the West.

We drove about five minutes away to a small, old cemetery in the woods. My father-in-law and mother-in-law cleaned the family tombstone, put fresh flowers and lit candles and incense. Several tombstones representing other families had already been visited and had fresh flowers and lit candles.

After the cleaning we said a short prayer and then departed.

Every house I’ve visited in Japan also has a shrine where the ashes of the departed are held for a while before being deposited in the family plot.  Portraits of ancestors are kept nearby. One ancient tradition is that during Obon the spirits of the ancestors return to the shrines to take part in the reunion which is why the shrines always have a cup of sake and, in some cases, a box of sweets and a pack of cigarettes. (Whatever you may or may not believe, I think it’s awesome the spirits of the dead expect booze and smokes when they visit.)

Other than that, there’s not many other traditions in Obon (well, there are the crowded trains and highways but that happens before and after the reunion, not during).

The cemetery. She Who Must Be Obeyed’s family shrine is above the concrete slab on the left.

This was my second visit to the family memorial as it is also a tradition to introduce new family members to the spirits of the ancestors. Both our girls were taken to the shrine, too.

To this day I feel lucky that no ancestral spirits at either shrine started yelling “NOOOO! NOOOO! NOOOO!” while the building shook and a more sinister voice said, in English “GET OUUUUT!”

The walls did start bleeding, though, but that may have more to do with humidity this time of year.

Note: Edited August 16, 2015 to provide clarity about the remains and the shrines in the house.