Tis the season of summer festivals in Japan and on any weekend from mid-July to late-August you’ll find hanging lanterns, people dressed in yukata, and takoyaki stands (that’s friend octopus balls…like the fried octopus is in a ball shape…not actually the balls of the octopus) at events in shrines, castles, down the length of streets, or even placed simply in parking lots. This past weekend I got a chance to enjoy the celebration at Usa Jingu, one of the most important Shinto shrines for the god Hachimensan in all of Japan (and located close to Ajimu).
While my original plan was to causally enjoy the festival as a spectator, I suddenly found myself becoming an active participant in the day’s events. One of the major parts of the festival at Usa Jingu is the carrying of the omikoshi in and around the shrine grounds (an omikoshi is a “portable shrine” that’s big and heavy and rests on wooden beams so it can be paraded around). From what I understand of it, the deal is that the various gods who hang around Usa Jingu should get a chance to see more of the area, so the Shinto priests pray them into omikoshi and then working as a team, a group of people carry the omikoshi around the town inspiring the locals and giving the gods a fun ride. The event is lively and invokes long standing Japanese traditions, but it’s also a bit exhausting for those who carry the omikoshi (cause even with 15 people lifting together a large wooden vessel with large wooden beams is still really heavy). My Japanese friend Hiro asked me if I wanted to help carry the omikoshi in the festival and after a simple “sure, I guess”, I found myself changing into a pair of short shorts and donning a light robe and a pair of footies that made my feet look like Ninja Turtle feet.
There were multiple “teams” of omikoshi carriers made up of mostly young men from the area (however this year there was also a women’s team) and once we were all outfitted in our clothing, we gathered at Usa Jingu to be rallied and blessed by the Shinto priests. After some bowing and clapping and the handing out of small talismans to wear around our belts, everyone was given a bit of salt and some sake to lick and shoot before the carrying began. I will admit that around this time I started thinking about the Ark of the Covenant and how like the Ark, the omikoshi were box-shaped and carried by poles and I was wondering what would happen if I actually touched the omikoshi instead of just the pole (cause at least one Israelite was struck down by touching the Ark with his hand) and if what I was doing was in any way in contest with my Christian beliefs. But the atmosphere of the event was light and I looked really awesome in my clothes, so off we went to walk the 2 kilometer course.
The carrying wasn’t too strenuous due in part to the frequent stops we made along the way to have refreshments. The people cheered as we passed and sometimes a shop owner would rush out to give us a bottle of sake to put on our omikoshi as we walked around the neighborhood adjacent to the shrine. After about 2 hours or so of carrying, everyone made it back to where we had started from and with a final lifting of the SHRINE and a dangerous running wildly around in circle maneuver, we laid the omikoshi down to rest.
After a shower and a return to civilian clothes, I finished my evening with a walk around Usa Jingu in the evening crowd eating kakigori (snow cone) and awing at the blazing sparkle of the festival fireworks. The day was hot and tiring, but enjoyable because it gave me a chance to participate in something truly Japanese. And I also got to show off my nice legs.
2 comments:
Ah, yes, I remember doing this my first year in Japan. I was telling my parents about it, and my Dad said, "I hope you weren't supporting any false gods". And I said, "This false god wasn't supporting himself, that's for sure. We had to support his false god ass all over the town
LOL! (@ Joel)
Nice pictures bro. Stay cool, literally.
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