EVENTS
Salinas Asian Cultural Faire (April)
The Salinas Asian Cultural Faire celebrates the cultural and historical presence of the Chinese, Filipino, and Japanese communities in Salinas. The Buddhist Temple of Salinas, the Salinas Chinese Association, and the Filipino Cultural Center open their doors to the community with a walking tour highlighting the history of Chinatown. There is delicious food, demonstrations of Tai Chi, Filipino folk dancing, kendo, bonsai display, and more. It is held on the last Saturday in April, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., every year.
The Salinas Asian Cultural Faire is made possible by the Asian Cultural Experience, a non-profit organization whose mission is to preserve, promote, and enrich the history and multicultural identity of Salinas Chinatown, historically the home of the Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino communities in Salinas. For more information, visit their website.
Salinas Obon Festival (July)
Obon is a Japanese Buddhist custom in which we honor the spirits of our ancestors. It has been celebrated in Japan for over 500 years. Families return to their ancestral homes and visit the graves of their ancestors. It is a time of reunion for families and friends, a time of reflection on how our lives are built on the foundations of those who came before us, a time of gratitude. This is why Obon includes a dance of celebration, the Obon Odori.
As Buddhists in America, we carry on this tradition in Salinas. We observe the traditional religious services and visit the graves of our family and friends at this time. However, over the decades, like the other temples in the Buddhist Churches of America network, we also host a separate large community event that is open to the public, where we share examples of Japanese cultural activities. We have demonstrations of martial arts, flower arranging, bonsai, and tea ceremony. San Jose Taiko performs for us every year. We spend many hours preparing a variety of great food for everyone to enjoy. We conclude the event with the traditional Obon Odori (Dance).
This is our showcase public event and our biggest fundraiser of the year. It is held on the last Sunday of July from 12 pm to 5 pm every year.
Photo gallery of some of the demonstrations
Photo gallery of the activities and the Obon Odori
Temple Mochitsuki (December)
Every December, the Buddhist Temple of Salinas makes the traditional mochi in anticipation of the New Year. Mochi is made by washing and then soaking sweet rice for 24 hours. It is then put into steamers and steamed to a perfect consistency for the pounding process. Finally, it is shaped while it is still very hot into mochi rice cakes. Photos of past event.
New Year’s Eve Service (Joya-e) and Bell Ringing
The short service consists of sutra chanting and an end-of-year message. Then we all go to our outdoor Bell Tower to ring the bell 108 times. The 108 represents our human shortcomings. We then bring the year to an end by eating soba noodles together.