JAPANESE DANCE

There are many traditional dances in Japan, but the one of the most famous and common dances is the Bon dance, called "Bon Odori" in Japanese. People dance the Bon Dance during the Bon Festival, held every summer in districts and neighbourhoods in every city in Japan.

Above you can see Ms Michiko Moriguchi in a bright red kimono. You can find out more about the different kimonos here.

Bon week is held in August every year, and Obon, as it is often known, continues on for about a week. Bon means welcoming ancestors' souls and holding memorial services for them. During Bon, sometimes all relatives of a family gather and hold a memorial service for their ancestors, and reflect and reminisce. This practice comes from Chinese Buddhist tradition, a synergetic blend of Buddhist beliefs and ancestor worship.

The Bon Festival is held during Bon week, and people gather at nearby open spaces or parks, and dance to traditional Japanese music. The music should be happy to welcome their ancestors' souls, and people have a duty to create a happy, mysterious, and welcoming mood. Moreover, the Bon Dance should be held in the night because many Japanese people believe that their ancestors' souls come back during the night.

While technology in Japan has developed over the last hundred years, Japanese people have not forgotten their traditions, and many take part in the Bon Festival and Bon Dance every summer. Japanese people will probably continue to venerate this tradition.

The So-ran Bushi, however, is a new sort of Japanese traditional dance that was fused together with a modern rock beat.

(Article based on Wikipedia article and used under the GNU Free Documentation License)