also: とんど
noun
burning of New Year's decorations; dondo-yaki
A traditional event, usually on January 15th, where New Year's gate decorations (shimekazari, kadomatsu) are burned to send off the toshigami and pray for health and good harvest. Regional names include とんど, どんど焼き, and 左義長.
毎年1月15日に近所の神社でどんどが行われる。
Every year on January 15th, the dondo burning is held at the local shrine.
子どもたちがどんどで焼いた餅を食べると風邪をひかないと言われている
It is said that children won't catch a cold if they eat mochi roasted at the dondo fire.
A formal or historical term for the same fire festival, originally from a court ritual.
The origin is uncertain; possibly from the sound of burning or from a dialectal word for 'fire'. The alternate reading とんど may reflect regional variation.