The Waimea Shingon Mission with the Rev. Kohtoku Hirao and its membership will open the Kauai Buddhist Council calendar of bon dances and services Friday and Saturday at its temple located in the Waimea Valley.
“Obon season is upon us,” said Stacie Chiba Miguel, whose family are generations-old members of the Waimea Shingon Mission. “The church is opening up the obon season on June 13 and 14 and everyone is excited to welcome the community to celebrate with them.”
Food sales start from 5 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday. The bon prayer service starts at 6 p.m. on both nights. Following the service on Friday, Taiko Kauai will have a presentation before the bon dance starts at 7:30 p.m.
Following the service on Saturday, Tsunami Taiko will present its odaiko presentation before the bon dance starts at 7:30 p.m.
The special intermission entertainment includes the Daishi Ondo Shingon Mission Dance on Friday, and the Men of the Koi Dynasty on Saturday.
“The menu has been created and will include andagi, Flying Saucers and the Anda Dawg,” said Chiba-Miguel. “The Anda Dawg is an andagi pronto pup and sold out super-fast last year.”
Other items include the nishime plate, roast pork plate, somen salad, mazesushi and cone sushi.
Mazesushi was a surprisingly good seller during the 2024 bon dance when it sold out early into the food sales.
Other items include yakitori, sekihan, pickle mango, shave ice, and Michiko’s famous curry and rice.
“If you know, you know,” Chiba-Miguel said. “This is the real Indian curry that sells out in a blink of an eye.”
If you miss the Indian curry at this bon dance, the Waimea Shingon Mission will next offer it on Spicy Sunday, Sept. 21, according it the church’s website. This will be a presale only with pickup on Sept. 21 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visit the church’s website at waimeashingon.mystrikingly.com for pricing and instructions for ordering.
Chiba-Miguel said to help alleviate crowded parking, there will be two shuttle vans shuttling people from the Waimea Hongwanji temple to the Waimea Shingon Mission.
Gerald Hirata of the Kauai Soto Zenshuji Temple in Hanapepe said they will be holding their church’s bon dance on June 27 and 28.
“On Kauai, the cultural and religious traditions of bon have evolved over five generations in the Japanese American community,” Hirata said. “On Kauai, the bon dance festivals are celebrated in their own special way during the bon season that runs from June to August.”
Following the Waimea Shingon Mission bon dance, the Lihue Hongwanji Mission in Kapaia will have its bon dance on June 20 and 21.
Source: The Garden Island
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