During the summer of 1932, the Seattle Buddhist Church (Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Temple) held the city's first Bon Odori festival. Bon Odori is a Japanese dance which is part of the observance of Obon, a Buddhist memorial service. The joyful dance, which celebrates the Buddhist tradition of selfless giving, expresses gratitude to departed family members and ancestors. Over the years, the festival has grown to include flower and craft exhibits, food booths and other activities. Bon Odori is officially part of Seafair, Seattle's ten-week-long summer festival of neighborhood and community celebrations.

In this image a line of dancers is watched by spectators along the street in front of the Seattle Buddhist Church at 1020 Main Street in the Chinatown - International District neighborhood. The dancers are wearing traditional Japanese kimonos with an obi, zōri sandals, and tabi socks. Typical Bon Odori involves dancers forming a circle around the yagura, a raised platform for musicians, however the way in which the dance is performed is different in each region and some dances simply proceed in a straight line through the streets of the town.

Caption information source: "Seattle Buddhist Church is dedicated on October 4, 1941," by Margaret Riddle, retrieved from https://www.historylink.org/File/10785.