gate fire; ceremonial fire at a gate
A fire lit at a gate for traditional occasions such as funerals, weddings, and Obon. Not an everyday word; mainly encountered in cultural or historical contexts.
In some regions, the custom of lighting a gate fire in front of the house gate during Obon still remains.
Compound of 門 (kado, 'gate') and 火 (hi, 'fire'), with rendaku voicing of 火 to び. The exact historical origin of the practice is uncertain, but it is associated with traditional Japanese rites of passage and ancestor veneration.