Bon Dance Panel 4 - From Bon Odori to Bon Dance

In the 1950s, Hawai’i's Japanese community shifted from the issei to the nisei and the "bon odori" began transforming into a Hawai’i-style "bon dance."

Bon dances got infused with new songs based on Hawai’i's lifestyle and Hawai’i-themed songs composed in Japan. The old "Hole-hole-bushi" song sung by Japanese laborers in the sugar plantations got a new version composed by Japanese composer Raymond Hattori in 1957 at Columbia Records in Japan. In the 1960s, Buddhist bon dance songs like Bukkyo Odori, Daishi Ondo, and Shinran Ondo were also introduced. Likely due to the bon dance's strong connection with Buddhist temples. ("Bukkyo" means Buddhism, "Daishi" is an honorific title for a Buddhist sect's founder, and "Shinran" is the name of the founder of the Jodo Shinshu Sect.)

Even today, the bon dance is the largest social gathering of nikkei in Hawai’i. Even without understanding the Japanese language, young and old alike can dance to Japanese songs and enjoy the bon dance. Originally, the bon odori was for the Japanese to reaffirm their Japanese identity. After the war, it has become an event reflecting Hawai’i's melting pot. Today, we often see people from other ethnicities enjoying the bon dance.

Panel photos: Top photo is a bon dance food stand at Kona Hongwanji on the Big Island. Bottom photo is a bon dance at Lahaina Jodo Mission on Maui showing non-nikkei dancers.