Obon has come around again in Fukuoka and Hakata. On the evening of 13 August, families light a small welcoming fire to guide their ancestors home. Whether you are heading back to a family house in Hakata for the holiday, or simply want to spend a quiet moment of your own, why not meet this year's Obon with an incense stick you made with your own hands?
Obon 2026: Thursday 13 to Sunday 16 August
- Thu 13 August — Mukaebi, the welcoming fire that receives the ancestors
- Fri 14 & Sat 15 August — the days spent in their company
- Sun 16 August — Okuribi, the fire that sees them off
The welcoming fire is usually lit in the early evening. Customs differ a little from region to region and from household to household, so follow whatever your family does.
The smoke is a signpost home
The fires and smoke of Obon are said to serve as a marker, so that returning spirits do not lose their way. The welcoming fire is the clearest example, but the incense offered at the family altar has long been understood to do something similar.
Fragrance cannot be seen. And yet it is unmistakably there, changing the air of a room. Watching the smoke rise slowly while your hands are pressed together, something in you quietens — many people know that feeling.
From buying it, to making it
Incense can be bought at any supermarket or Buddhist goods shop. That is perfectly fine, and nothing about it is wrong.
But once a year, at Obon, you might offer a stick you made yourself. We think there is something in that.
"Grandpa always liked sweet smells." "Grandma's house always smelled like this."
The time you spend choosing a fragrance while remembering someone may, in itself, be the truest offering. Remembering the person is said to be the finest tribute you can make.
Sandalwood — 1,300 years in places of prayer
One of the two bases you can choose at TSUTSUMU is sandalwood, byakudan in Japanese.
Incense reached Japan in the Asuka period, and for more than 1,300 years since, sandalwood has been burned in temples and before family altars. When most people picture "the smell of incense," this is the scent they are picturing.
Sweet, deep, like standing inside the heart of a tree. A restless mind settles slowly. If you are making a stick for Obon, we would suggest starting with sandalwood.
Benzoin — a name that means the breath comes to rest
Benzoin also suits Obon well as a layer over sandalwood.
It is a soft, vanilla-like sweetness. Its Japanese name, ansokukou, means that the breath comes to rest, and it has been burned in places of prayer since ancient times. Added to the depth of sandalwood, it becomes a fragrance that seems to gently gather you in.
"For my grandmother, who loved sweet things" — some guests choose it for a reason like that. Any reason is reason enough.
Sixty minutes on the way home
TSUTSUMU is about a 10-minute walk from Hakata Station — close enough to stop by before boarding a train or a plane.
The experience takes about 60 minutes, and your finished incense goes home with you the same day, so you can carry it straight on to wherever you are headed. It comes in a wooden box, ready to be handed to someone as it is.
For an extra ¥500 the box can be engraved. Some guests have the name of the person they are remembering put on it.
Customs vary between Buddhist schools and between families. If you are unsure whether a hand-made stick is appropriate for your family's altar, it is worth asking your family temple or an older relative.
This may be for you if…
- You are travelling home for Obon and unsure what to bring
- You would like to offer something different at the family altar this year
- You cannot visit the grave in person and want to mark the day at home
- You are facing the first Obon after losing someone dear
Reservations & Access
- Address: Motojima Building 401, 3-5-20 Hakata Ekimae, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka (about a 10-minute walk from JR Hakata Station, Hakata Exit)
- Hours: 10:00–18:00 (last entry 17:00)
- 🎐 Open every day in August, including Mondays and Tuesdays (normally our closing days)
- Price: ¥3,500 per person (optional engraving on the wooden box +¥500)
- Duration: about 60 minutes / Languages: Japanese, English, Korean
- Reservations: 24 hours a day via our website / Phone 070-6697-5255
- Instagram / TikTok: @tsutsumu_incense
We are open throughout the Obon period (13–16 August), so you are welcome before or after a trip home. These days are expected to be busy, so we recommend booking early.
Scent is said to be bound more tightly to memory than any other sense. Light the stick you made with your own hands this Obon, and with the smoke, time spent with someone may quietly return to you. Sixty minutes, in Fukuoka and Hakata.
