Aug 17 (NHK) - Huge bonfires on mountains lit up Japan's old capital, Kyoto, on Wednesday night in an annual Buddhist ceremony.
One bonfire on a mountainside formed the shape of the Chinese character meaning "large".
This was followed by the lighting of 4 other fires, including one in the shape of a boat.
This event is said to date back more than 300 years. The fires are lit to send off the spirits of ancestors, which are believed to return home during the mid-summer Bon festival period.