Mountain Deity Festival (Yama no Kami Matsuri)

About this event

This is a traditional Shinto ritual held every year on February 8 in the Sekigata district of Yaizu City. Early in the morning, men gather at the house on duty called "Yado" to make large straw Jatai (dragons), banners, sacred straw ropes (shimenawa), onbe (gohei wands), sacred bows, and sacred arrows, then head to the rocky crag (iwakura) called Gareba where the mountain deity is enshrined. Along the way, they climb the mountain path while loudly chanting phrases like "Kanji offering for the mountain deity, anything goes, one sho, sixteen mon" and "Let us go, let us go, let us go carrying the onbe, let us go." After placing the Jatai at Gareba, offering mochi rice cakes and sekihan (red beans and rice), and performing prayers of worship, a ritual of shooting sacred arrows from the sacred bow is performed. Afterwards, a Naorai feast is held at a location downhill from Gareba, where stewed okara and simmered beans wrapped in haran leaves are distributed, and sake warmed in bamboo tubes is shared and enjoyed together with the deity. It is a festival where you can experience valuable local folk culture. It is considered to preserve the oldest form among similar festivals and is also known as a Shinto ritual praying for bumper crops.

Venue

Hanazawa Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings

18 Hanazawa, Yaizu, Shizuoka 425-0001