William. The “higanbana” is so named as it blossoms at the time of the Buddhist celebration of higan, when your ancestors to whom who still probably owe money to return to remind you of that. The bulbs of the plant are very poisonous and are thus used in Japan to surround paddies and houses to keep away pests; also, their deep roots form a dense water barrier, which is why most of them are grown close to rivers, particularly surrounding rice paddy embankments. In Japan, the Red Spider Lily signals the arrival of fall. Many Buddhist will use it to celebrate the arrival of fall with a ceremony at the tomb of one of their ancestors. They plant them on graves because it shows a tribute to the dead. People believe that, since the Red Spider Lily is mostly associated with death, one should never give a bouquet of these flowers.