• It is every year
  it is cold on the first day
  of "Higan" week
                      Shiki Masaoka


• when man of this world
  surpassed the border of life and death,
  the light of "Higan" will shine forever
                      Hiroshi Murase

　March is the month of "Higan".
　We call "Higan" "Higan-e". Chinese Buddhist priest translated "Pāramitā" in Sanskrit(ancient Indian language) as "Higan". It means "world of the realization"(attaining Buddhahood). The world where we live in is called "Shigan" (the world of samsara with plenty of desire and pains). And there is a river between "Shigan" and "Higan", and the water is full of the power of worldly passions(desires). You must train yourself every day to cross the river. The training means six kinds of ascetic practices for Buddhist saints (sbyin-pa, tshul-khrims, bzod-pa, brtson-'grus, bsam-gtan, shes-rab). However, as it is hard to train every day, it is decided to train twice a year, autumn and spring. "Higan" is a period training to go over to "Higan".
　It is good not only to visit to the grave and the temple that is apt to become disregarded in busyness of everyday, but also to perform almsgiving, to take good care of creatures, and to live a quiet life, remembering the deceased on "Higan" week.
　Specifically, when you clean the family's Buddhist altar, change flowers newly and offer fruits, the vegetables in season and the favorites of the deceased person on the first day of "Higan" (18th), the deceased person will be pleased. In addition, I hear many people offer "gomoku-zushi." It's good to clear up old flowers and garbage in the grave, pour water into the gravestone after cleansing the grave, and give flowers and burn incense and worship it.
　The family ancestors worship (visit to a grave, temple) on "Higan" week is the Japanese yearly event.

Quoted from the following books
　Kiyoyuki Higuchi "Seikatu-saijiki", Sampo-syuppan
　Syoyu Hanayama "Busshin", Miyake-syuppan