Donto Festival

Festival highlights

The burning of New Year decorations in a large sacred fire is the Donto Festival’s main highlight.

At Osaki Hachimangu Shrine, it is held as the Matsutaki Festival, which is also known for Hadaka Mairi, in which people walk from across the city to worship at the shrine.

Participants proceed carrying bells and lanterns, dressed in white headbands, white cloth wraps, and white tabi socks, and warm themselves by the sacred fire. The scene offers a glimpse of the beliefs and distinctive traditions of each area.

A Miyagi fire festival where New Year decorations are sent off in a sacred fire as people pray for a year free of misfortune

What to expect

Typically, as the period of New Year’s pine decorations draws to a close, people bring their decorations to shrines and other sites, where the collected items are burned in a sacred fire.

Visitors warm themselves by the fire and pray for a year free of illness and misfortune and for the safety of their households.

In some areas, Hadaka Mairi is also held: participants walk to a shrine in designated attire and take part in the event where the New Year decorations are burned.

How to take part

For visitors, warming themselves by the sacred fire and offering New Year decorations are common ways to take part in the Donto Festival.

Hadaka-mairi, on the other hand, is an event held by participating groups and involves preparations such as special attire and water purification.

Please check the information provided by each venue or group to find out whether anyone can take part in the Hadaka-mairi naked pilgrimage.

Location and access

Host prefecture Miyagi Prefecture

This map shows the surrounding area, not the exact venue location.

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Dates and season

In many parts of Miyagi Prefecture, it is held from the evening of January 14, the day before the Little New Year.

However, the date varies by area; in Ishinomaki City, for example, it is sometimes held on January 7.

Tips for your visit

Be careful of sparks and smoke near the sacred fire, and take care with clothing and belongings that can easily catch fire.

Hadaka-mairi takes place in low temperatures, so participants should take their health into consideration.

Traffic restrictions may be in place at some venues. Take particular care if you are driving near Osaki Hachimangu Shrine.

Origins and History of Donto Festival

It is unclear when the Donto Festival began, but it had become an annual event by 1849.

At Osaki Hachimangu Shrine’s Matsutaki Festival, the burning of New Year decorations is said to have been unique to the shrine until around 1880, and the name became widespread in the modern era.

Osaki Hachimangu Shrine’s Matsutaki Festival is said to have a 300-year history and was designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Sendai City in 2005.

Donto Festival at a Glance

Donto Festival is a signature Little New Year fire festival in Miyagi Prefecture. New Year decorations are burned in a sacred fire, and people warm themselves by it and pray for a year free of illness and misfortune and for the safety of their households.

Even within Miyagi Prefecture, the date, venue, and form of Hadaka Mairi vary by area.