Nagasaki shoro nagashi (“sending off the dead” or “spirit boat procession”). Screencap from YouTube user akimama25 [1].
In mid-August every year, Japan observes Obon (お盆), the festival of the dead [2]. If they have the time and the money, family members return from the big cities to their ancestral homes to spend a week or so visiting the graves and remembering the dead.
It is believed the spirits of the deceased return to the family home at this time as well to spend a few days among the living. Once the week is up, the spirits return to the land of the dead for another year.
Every region of Japan has its own special way of observing Obon.
For example, many communities in Japan send off the dead at the end of Obon in a ceremony called toro nagashi [3] (灯籠流し), where paper lanterns are set adrift on a river or on the tide to be be carried away by the current back to the land of the dead.
Nagasaki's variation of this tradition includes firecrackers and gigantic floats in a ceremony that fills the streets of the city called shoro nagashi [4] (精霊流し), or “sending off the dead.”
Sometimes translated as a “spirit boat procession”, elaborate floats are constructed and paraded by the family members of someone who has died sometime in the previous 12 months. The destination for the Nagasaki dead is Paradise (Sukhavati, 極楽浄土 [5]).
Nearly 200 people participate in or come to view the event in Nagasaki. The spectators who line the streets often set off firecrackers.
Each year the whole thing is captured and shared on social media.
The kids are totally excited to be lighting off [roman candles] on the street, and their dad is a total “firecracker ninja” with his red sash.
Chinese-style firecrackers are not typically included as part of the traditional Japanese Obon festival in other parts of Japan. But Nagasaki, located in the far western reaches of Japan, has enjoyed a close trade relationship with China for at least 500 years. Nagasaki is notable for its Chinese-influenced cuisine and architecture, and the use of firecrackers as part of the shoro nagashi parade is yet another example of the city's strong ties with the China.
The firecrackers are said to ward off evil spirits.
It's the shoro nagashi! This spirit boat was enveloped in red smoke thanks to people lighting off fireworks around it. It was really cool! 😊🌟💕 The firecrackers really increased the tension of the scene.⤴︎⤴︎
It's been a long time since I have seen this. Four years? Five years?
The floats themselves are built by both individual families and by neighbourhoods. They feature lanterns with the names of the recently deceased and a family crest.
Video caption: Nagasaki shoro nagashi 2015: solemnity mixes with liveliness.
Families or neighborhood association members pull the floats through the streets of Nagasaki, as do members of clubs or fraternal organizations. Floats typically feature a large, poster-size photo of the recently deceased.
[The women of the Aono clan] concentrated on drinking booze, raising a little hell, getting tired and having fun this Obon.
Floats come in all shapes and sizes. Families will typically construct smaller floats, while neighbourhood associations and fraternal organizations will build more elaborate creations.
It's the Obon holiday, and I am eating and drinking my fill! And I get to come back to Nagasaki again next week for a business trip!
According to Wikipedia [4], people who are not mourning someone who has recently died will adorn the floats with fruits and flowers.
Nagasaki shoro nagashi. The firecrackers are so loud they hurt the ears. Why firecrackers???
Some floats are designed to look like objects and interests that the newly deceased held dear during their life.
For example, some floats may feature a prized possession like a car. This particular float was captured by two different people with two very different perspectives.
My uncle who loved cars. Even though I was supposed to join a shoro nagashi for the first time in my life, I couldn't because I had to work! I'll regret that for the rest of my life. I have to quit the service industry!
I couldn't believe it when I saw a float with a car on top 😳🚗🚗 This year's shoro nagashi has started, and I'm in a great place to snap photos!
Firecrackers are lit off during the afternoon and into the night as the parade continues on through the streets of Nagasaki.
Nagasaki's Obon “spirit boat procession.” We're sending off the people who died over the past year in style. We're sending them off to Paradise (Sukhavati, 極楽浄土)!
There are a lot of firecrackers, and the lanterns are lit with real candles. Although injuries are rare, this year saw a float go up in flames in the most spectacular way.
That particular float was caught on camera and uploaded to Instagram before it caught fire.
Shoro nagashi in Nagasaki for Obon.
Just a few hours, as shown towards the end of this newscast, the float caught fire and was destroyed, injuring one person.
While the floats used to be set adrift on Nagasaki Bay, in recent years the floats are retrieved from the ocean and burned in a subsequent ceremony in order to prevent pollution.
Spirit boat, lit lanterns and the spirits of the deceased, and those who see the spirits off.