[00:00.49]A Festival for the Dead is held once a year in Japan.
[00:05.59]This festival is a cheerful occasion,
[00:08.96]for on this day, the dead are said to return to their homes and they are welcomed by the living.
[00:16.27]As they are expected to be hungry after their long journey, food is laid out for them.
[00:23.27]Specially-made lanterns are hung outside each house to help the dead to find their way.
[00:29.87]All night long, people dance and sing.
[00:34.32]In the early morning, the food that had been laid out for the dead is thrown into a river or into the sea
[00:42.39]as it is considered unlucky for anyone living to eat it.
[00:47.23]In towns that are near the sea,
[00:49.99]the tiny lanterns which had been hung in the streets the night before,
[00:55.44]are placed into the water when the festival is over.
[00:59.71]Thousands of lanterns slowly drift out to sea guiding the dead on their return journey to the other world.
[01:08.86]This is a moving spectacle,
[01:11.44]for crowds of people stand on the shore watching the lanterns drifting away until they can be seen no more.