Learning about the San Jose Obone Festival

Well, you are seeing a snippet of a dance practice video from the 2026 San Jose Oat Bone Festival. Today is the second and final day of the event in the South Bay. By the way, it's the largest festival of its kind in the United States, dates back some 90 years. It features faith, history, culture, and of course, some dancing too. Joining us to talk all about it is the Reverend Henry Adams, head minister of the San Jose Buddhist Church, Betsuin. Reverend, great to have you with us. Good morning. Good, good morning. Thank you very much. Well, let's start on a personal note, if we can. You took over the church at the beginning of the year. How's it been going? It's been going wonderfully. I'm very grateful for the kind support of all of the Betsuin temple members and the community, the San Jose, Japantown communities. They've been extremely welcoming and patient with me as I learned the ropes and just to make wonderful relationships in this special community. Very good. Well, tell us about the Obon Festival and why is it so meaningful in the Buddhist faith? The Obon Festival is a traditional Buddhist observance. It's held in the summer months. It's held throughout East Asia, but it's particularly prominent in the Japanese Buddhist tradition. It's a time for remembering ancestors, reflecting on our gratitude for those who've come before and all their efforts that make our lives possible today. And it's a time in which we take comfort in the Buddhist teachings that although we may not have those who've passed away to be physically present with us, that they continue to be our guides in our lives. We say they guide us from the other shore. And one of the biggest attraction we're watching is the cultural dances. Volunteer performers have spent weeks, if not years together dancing. How special is this performance, Reverend? It's a wonderful gathering. And in fact, it's not so much a performance as an invitation for the whole community to come and join us in the dancing. The dances are fairly simple. They're very repetitive. And so we hope that everyone will come out and be a part of it. So it's really a special opportunity for us to welcome the whole community into this experience of joy, of gratitude, for those who've come before, of receiving comfort, for those who are grieving and passing on traditions that have sustained our community down through multiple generations. Well, in addition to those cultural dances, there are also a food booths, taiko drums, even a seminar that is literally titled Buddhism 101. Tell us about some of these attractions as well. Of course. Yeah, so we have delicious food, traditional Japanese foods, as well as some modern American favorites like smoothies, but all the things people love about Japanese food, tempura, sushi, teriyaki chicken, and so forth. But we also want to take this as an opportunity to share some of the wisdom and the compassion of the Buddhist tradition. So we do have Buddhism 101 sessions that will be happening today in the temple hall at 1130 and three. We'll also be having sessions where we'll be going into our columbarium to do some chanting and some traditional Buddhist practices that folks are invited to participate and take part in. And of course, there are lots of games for the kids too. So it's all day long. They'll be fun for the whole family at the Obon Festival. Well, it sounds great. Reverend Henry Adams, want to thank you for your time. All the best to you with the festival and enjoy. Thank you, sir. Great, thank you very much. Appreciate it. All right, let's give you the details now. The Obon Festival runs from noon to nine o'clock tonight. It's located on 5th Street between Taylor and Empire Streets in San Jose's Japantown. There's parking in a complimentary shuttle service from the Santa Clara County lot at North 1st and Heading Street. So if you have time and want to have a little fun today and learn a little bit about the Buddhism culture, go check it out at noon today in the South Bay. All right, weather-wise, let's say goodbye.