LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i Museum took advantage of a break in the Kaua‘i Buddhist Council schedule of summer bon dances and built a Japanese cultural festival highlighted by its own version of the obon celebration Saturday. The day-long festival coincided
LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i Museum took advantage of a break in the Kaua‘i Buddhist Council schedule of summer bon dances and built a Japanese cultural festival highlighted by its own version of the obon celebration Saturday.
The day-long festival coincided with the Kaua‘i Museum’s ‘Ohana Day, the first Saturday of the month, during which kama‘aina were admitted at no charge and others were treated to a discounted admission.
Piano specialist Paul F. Kennedy, working on restoring a historic piano for the museum, traded off and took a turn playing one of the Kyle Chew flutes. That was much to the amusement of the museum staff who were treated to the first musical notes from the piano after it was moved into its new home.
Chew, who earlier in the week entertained thousands of people with Rakudo Taiko at the Kaua‘i Hospice “Concert in the Sky,” became more intimate, working with guests in explaining the different flutes he had on hand and even allowing some an opportunity at the basic breaths of playing the shakuhachi, or Japanese flute.
Other hands-on activities were headed up by the Kaua‘i Family Community Education group, who also spearhead the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau Fair Home Show, its members effectively incorporating the message of healthy nutrition and recycling into its flower arranging activity.
The Kaua‘i Sanshin Club brought forth its ensemble of players of the sanshin, an Okinawan variation of the Japanese shamisen.
Chris Faye, the museum’s curator, explained that the most obvious difference is the Japanese shamisen is made of cat skin while the Okinawan sanshin is made of snake skin.
The Kaua‘i Sanshin Club, featured at the bon dance at the Kaua‘i Soto Zen Temple Zenshuji in Hanapepe two weeks ago, is attempting to preserve the tradition of the Okinawan instrument playing on the island.
Everything was tied to the mini bon dance which drew people to the newly renovated courtyard of the museum, a departure from last year when the bon dance was held on the front lawn.
The elements of the celebration, which stems from the Buddhist religion of honoring one’s departed ancestors, were all present — the yagura fashioned out of a ladder draped in the festive red-and-white cloth, Japanese lanterns, called chochin, and even the teru teru bozu, a Japanese amulet stemming back to feudal times for rain.
Created out of cloth or paper, the teru teru bozu — its name hints at the “shiny shiny,” or bald, shaven head of a Buddhist monk — is hung rightside up to keep rain from damping a celebration. But it also has the power to invoke rain by being hung upside down.
The Kaua‘i Buddhist Council schedule of bon dances resume July 13 and 14 at the West Kaua‘i Hongwanji, Hanapepe Temple, followed by the Lihu‘e Hongwanji Mission in Kapa‘ia on July 20 and 21.
Special bon services start at 6 p.m. with dancing to start at 7:30 p.m.
• Dennis Fujimoto can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
