Call to Heal Our Ancestors
Every August in Japan, streets, rivers, and mountains glow with the gentle light of lanterns. Families gather, temples ring with chants, and communities sway together in the rhythmic steps of Bon Odori — a dance that welcomes the spirits of loved ones who have passed on.
This is Obon — one of Japan’s most cherished traditions, a Buddhist-inspired festival dedicated to honoring and reconnecting with our ancestors. For three days, it is believed that the veil between the worlds thins, allowing ancestral spirits to return to the living world. Families clean graves, light welcoming fires (mukaebi), prepare offerings, and, at the festival’s close, guide their ancestors back with farewell fires (okuribi).
The rituals of Obon are more than cultural tradition — they are an act of remembering. They acknowledge that we are here because of those who came before, and that the patterns of their lives ripple through our own.
Why Ancestors Still Matter
Modern life often encourages us to look forward — to the next goal, the next achievement — but healing sometimes means looking back. Our ancestors carry stories, strengths, and struggles, and whether we realize it or not, these can live on in us.
Science and psychology are catching up with what spiritual traditions have always known: family patterns, traumas, and unresolved grief can be passed through generations, shaping the way we see ourselves and the world. This is not just genetic inheritance — it’s emotional and energetic.
When we consciously connect with our ancestors, we have the chance to:
- Acknowledge unspoken grief or unfinished stories
- Release inherited fears, limitations, or karmic imprints
- Receive the blessings, resilience, and wisdom of the lineage
- Transform the past to create a freer future
Obon as a Mirror for Healing Work
In ancestral healing practices — including hypnotherapy and regression work — we often use guided journeys, symbolic rituals, and embodied movement to meet and release ancestral energies. Obon offers a perfect mirror for these methods.
- Mukaebi (Welcoming Fires) resemble the opening of a healing space — creating a safe, sacred container for ancestral connection.
- Toro Nagashi (Lantern Floating) mirrors the symbolic release of burdens or traumas, sending them into the current of time.
- Bon Odori (Dance) reflects how movement can unlock stored emotions and bring joy back into the body.
- Okuribi (Farewell Fires) parallel the closing of a healing session, ensuring peace for the ancestors and healthy boundaries for the living.
By blending such symbolic acts with the tools of modern hypnotherapy, we can create powerful spaces for both personal and generational transformation.
From Obon to Pitru Paksha — Another Doorway Opens
While Obon is celebrated in August in Japan, in the Hindu tradition there is another powerful time for ancestral connection: Pitru Paksha.
Pitru Paksha, which falls this year from September 17 to October 2, is a fortnight dedicated to honoring ancestors through offerings (shraddha and tarpan). Like Obon, it is believed that the ancestors are especially close during this period, and acts of remembrance and generosity can bring blessings to both the departed and the living.
In many ways, Pitru Paksha is India’s counterpart to Obon — a different cultural expression of the same universal truth:
When we heal the bonds with our ancestors, we heal something deep within ourselves.
A Gentle Invitation
In the spirit of Obon’s lanterns and Pitru Paksha’s offerings, I will be holding a 3-day in-person Ancestral Healing Immersion during this year’s Pitru Paksha.
We’ll draw inspiration from these ancient traditions while working with modern therapeutic tools:
- Guided regression journeys to meet and understand your lineage
- Symbolic water and fire ceremonies for release and blessing
- Movement and sound healing to embody the transformation
- Integration circles to weave the insights into everyday life
This is not a religious ritual, but a culturally respectful healing space — open to all who feel called to connect with their roots, release inherited burdens, and receive the gifts of their lineage.
Spaces will be limited to keep the work deep and personal. If you’ve ever felt the pull to understand your family’s story, or to step out of patterns that feel older than you, this is your moment.
This Pitru Paksha, let us do what our ancestors hoped we would — not just live their dreams, but also free ourselves from their sorrows.
When we light the inner lantern, we guide them — and ourselves — home.
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