Tōrō-nagashi - Flowing lanterns
by Rbl
Description
Every year, around sunset, small lanterns are released on the Sumida River. This is the Tōrō-nagashi, one of the most important events of the summer season.
The show is extremely exciting: hundreds and hundreds of floating lanterns illuminate the bed of the river that flows slowly and freely towards the ocean.
It is thought that the lanterns serve as a guide to the spirits of the ancestors who, returning during the O-bon to visit their loved ones, can return to the afterlife and be reborn.