During Obon, all Buddhist temples in Japan perform segaki ("feeding the hungry ghosts"), a ritual for helping gaki, the ghosts suffering by “insatiable hunger".
But at the Kencho-ji Temple in Kamakura, after segaki there is a second ritual… Here’s the story:
According to the legend, sometimes between 1250 and 1300, at the end of the Obon ceremony, a samurai appeared. Because the ceremony was about to end, the samurai, saddened, was preparing to leave. However, the priest noticed him, called him back and performed another ritual, just for him.
After this, the samurai thanked the priest and told him: “I am the ghost of Kajiwara Kagetoki” and then disappeared…
Since then, near the gate from this photo (Sanmon Gate), where the ghost appeared, a second ceremony is performed, called Kajiwara Segaki.
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Yesterday’s Japan Photo:Japanese Garden in Winter, Hotoku Ninomiya |
