Each year during August the Okinawans hold an Obon festival. This is a festival honoring one's ancestors, similar to the Day of the Dead in Mexico. Families gather at the family's tombs to clean the areas and to offer ceremonial food, beer and awamori to the dead ancestors.
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One of the highlights of these ceremonial festivals is the Eisa dancing. After the spirits of their dead ancestors are leaving for their spirit world, performances are held in memory of them.
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The music of the Eisa is performed on 3 stringed lute like instruments called sanshin, large barrel like drums, medium sized laced drums, and smaller hand drums. The dancing takes on many different formations. Not only men participate but women in kimonos dance as well as younger children, imitating and preparing for future roles in Eisa performances. Eisa is considered a modern Okinawan art form.
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There were hundreds of performers and hundreds of performance watchers on Saturday afternoon while we were there. Each team's routine was 15-20 minutes of continual dancing and drumming. The costumes were bright and colorful as were the drums and flags carried by performers.
.JPG)
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