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--- Lesson 96 The dead return |
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--- First listen and then answer the question. |
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--- What happens to the lanterns at the end of the festival? |
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A Festival for the Dead is held once a year in Japan. |
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This festival is a cheerful occasion, |
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for on this day, the dead are said to return to their homes and they are welcomed by the living. |
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As they are expected to be hungry after their long journey, food is laid out for them. |
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Specially-made lanterns are hung outside each house to help the dead to find their way. |
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All night long, people dance and sing. |
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In the early morning, the food that had been laid out for the dead is thrown into a river or into the sea |
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as it is considered unlucky for anyone living to eat it. |
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In towns that are near the sea, |
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the tiny lanterns which had been hung in the streets the night before,are placed into the water when the festival is over. |
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Thousands of lanterns slowly drift out to sea guiding the dead on their return journey to the other world. |
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This is a moving spectacle, |
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for crowds of people stand on the shore watching the lanterns drifting away until they can be seen no more. |
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--- end |
