Origin

The character 盆 combines two parts: 皿 (a picture of a shallow dish or plate viewed from above) at the bottom, which establishes the meaning area of "container" or "vessel," and 分 at the top, which serves as a sound hint for the character's pronunciation. The meaning of "basin" or "tray" comes directly from the dish component, since these are everyday objects for holding or serving food and water. Over time, this character extended to mean the Obon lantern festival, likely because trays and basins were used in ritual offerings during that celebration.