Kobata Banner Festival (Kobata no Hata Matsuri)

About this event

This is a traditional festival where participants hoist five-colored banners and head toward Mount Kobata while blowing conch shells. Originating from historical legends associated with Minamoto no Yoriyoshi and Yoshiie during the Early Nine Years' War, the event features rituals such as Hayama seclusion and the "womb passing" ceremony for first-time participants in addition to the banner procession. It has been designated a National Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property. The departure ceremony venue is the grounds of the former Kobata Daiichi Elementary School; after events such as footraces carrying the banners, the procession departs toward the mountain. The procession travels approximately 3 km along the road to Hayama Shrine.

Venue

Former Nihommatsu Municipal Kobata Daiichi Elementary School

52 Kobata Kamikutsuwada, Nihommatsu, Fukushima 964-0203