Japan has become familiar to many Nepalis through its technology, Mount Fuji, the samurai legacy, and a growing community of nearly 300,000 Nepalis.
Yet some parts of Japan’s cultural soul remain little known here. One of them could be the ‘Bon Odori', a summer dance festival held during the Obon period in mid-August when ancestral spirits are honoured.
It blends Japan's indigenous ancestor worship with Buddhism, which first arrived in the 6th century. The spirits are welcomed with prayers, family grave visits, and dances in the community. The festival was a vibrant street culture 500 years ago, and today Bon Odori is marked across Japan in many modern forms, each bringing its own signature choreography and music to life.
Among these, the Awa Odori in Tokushima is in a league of its own in a typically peaceful provincial town in western Japan. It features the distinctive ‘Namba’ style, in which the same-side hand and foot move forward together, a movement said to stem from the samurai era, when swords were worn on the left hip.
Once this basic motion is learned, dancers advance to the pulsating two-beat ‘Yattosa, yattosa’ rhythm. The steps may seem simple enough to join on the spot, but true mastery requires years of dedicated practice.
‘Awa’ is the ancient name for Tokushima, making Awa Odori literally the ‘Dance of Tokushima’. This 400-year-old festival runs for five days, from 11-15 August with over 100,000 costumed dancers braving humid midsummer heat from dusk until late at night, with 1.1 million tourists visit during the five days — more than doubling the city’s population.
For a few days, the region seems to slip into another world of crowds, heat, drums, bells, and shamisen. Yet amid this beautiful chaos, Japan’s excellence appears in its safety and orderly crowd management.
The essence of Awa Odori is captured in its famous chant: “Fools dance and fools watch, if you’re a fool either way, you’re losing out by not dancing!” This spirit grew from the merchant culture that flourished during Tokushima’s indigo boom some 400 years ago.
Though locals were usually thrifty and pragmatic, they spared no expense for this once-a-year festival. It reveals a fascinating duality in the Japanese psyche: normally reserved people releasing unbridled passion the moment they become dancers.
