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Shinnyo Lantern Floating Hawaiʻi Observes 25th Anniversary on Oahu

May 27, 2024

A smiling, elder Japanese woman, dressed in orange robes with a brocade apron and white shawl, sits on a chair under lights on a stage, holding hands with children and young-adults, who are all holding hands and joyfully smiling; a single open-flame lamp sits atop a lotus shaped base on a table in the foreground.

Honolulu, Hawaiʻi / Her Holiness Shinso Ito together with students of the Mālama Honua Public Charter School at the close of the 2024 Shinnyo Lantern Floating Hawaiʻi.

On Memorial Day (May 27, 2024), Shinnyo Lantern Floating Hawaiʻi returned to Honolulu’s Ala Moana Beach to collectively honor and hold in gratitude the men and women who died in service to their country, and to offer personal remembrance and prayers for those we have lost. An estimated 40,000 people attended.

On this 25th anniversary of the majestic and moving ceremony organized by Shinnyo-en and Nā Lei Aloha, participants were joined by Hawaii’s beloved voyaging canoes Hōkūleʻa and her sister canoe Moʻokiha. Hōkūleʻa returned home to Hawaii from her Moananuiākea voyage in December to be with her community during a time of grieving following devastating wildfires in Maui.

A large lantern for floating designed to look like a traditional double-hulled Hawaiian voyaging canoe sits on a table; the lantern housing forms an a frame, with outer walls covered with hand-painted artwork that depicts silhouettes of young and old walking hand in hand.
The guiding lantern for the earth designed and built by students of Mālama Honua Public Charter School.

This year saw the addition of a new guiding lantern for the earth. The earth lantern, designed and built by students at Mālama Honua Public Charter School in Waimānalo, carries prayers for our oceans, land, heavens, and all living things. The lantern is made of wood that had traveled the earth as part of Hōkūleʻa, as well as wood from Hikianalia.

There is a long-held tradition in East Asia of floating lanterns on water to honor our lost loved ones and reflect on our connections with them. Shinnyo Lantern Floating ceremonies provide space to come together in community to remember our loved ones—those who have made us who we are—and practice gratitude for all they have done for us. Shinnyo Lantern Floating Hawaiʻi is an opportunity to honor, to link our intentions, and to pass goodness on to those around us.

A elder Japanese woman, standing before a small low table holding implements, dressed in orange robes with an ornate brocade apron decorated with images of birds, solemnly holds a golden bell aloft in her outstretched right hand as she rings it; her face looks downward, as if she is inwardly in contemplation.

The 2024 ceremony held in Honolulu featured beautiful moments of connection led by Shinnyo-en’s spiritual leader Her Holiness Shinso Ito and representatives of prayers carried on the Guiding Lanterns.

Her Holiness addressed the crowd gathered on the beach with the following words of wisdom:

The brightness of the light within us will grow exponentially brighter, and we will become capable of helping all we meet find their way. In this way our lights will grow bright enough to ignite countless others.

Read Her Holiness’ remarks in full and learn more about Shinnyo Lantern Floating Hawaiʻi at www.lanternfloatinghawaii.com.

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