The Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival

This summer festival centers on Yae Shrine in Kamijuku, Hirakata, where the unpainted wooden inkyo is rolled over a muddy garden in the “doroinkyo” event. The mikoshi procession, water, and played on and flutes are tied to the community’s prayers.

About The Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival

The Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival is a summer festival centered on Yae Shrine in Kamijuku, Hirakata, Ageo City.

An unadorned, unfinished-wood mikoshi called the “inkyo mikoshi” is carried through the neighborhood, and at the garden of a sake station, the mikoshi is rolled over the mud in an event called “doroinkyo.”

The event has been handed down as a prayer for household safety and abundant harvests, and is designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property by Saitama Prefecture.

Source: 平方祇園祭のどろいんきょ行事 - 上尾市Webサイト / The Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival · 武州平方箕輪囃子が行われました - 上尾市Webサイト

Festival highlights

The main highlight is the sight of the unpainted wooden inkyo mikoshi being rolled over and over in a private home’s garden, where water has been sprinkled beforehand.

Water is splashed over it, and the young men rolling the mikoshi end up covered in mud.

There are also events in which the inkyo mikoshi is taken into the Arakawa River, as well as a feature in which the mikoshi is raised upright and pulled like a . Two people dressed as historical figures or characters from stories ride on the dashi.

A summer festival in Kamijuku, Hirakata, where a wooden mikoshi kicks up mud

What to expect

The event begins with “Oyama-dashi,” when the mikoshi leaves Yae Shrine at 1 p.m.

The mikoshi visits the sake stations set up by each group in Kamijuku, and doroinkyo is held at 5 of them.

Along the way, the event includes splashing water, taking the mikoshi into the Arakawa River, and pulling it as a dashi. It concludes with “Oyamashime,” when the mikoshi returns to Yae Shrine.

Location and access

Venue and address: Kamijuku district, centered on Yae Shrine

Event venue 埼玉県上尾市八枝神社

This map uses the venue name. Check the official guide for the event area and entrances.

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Dates and season

Season: The Sunday before Marine Day in July

Accommodation and hotels PR

Prices and availability are current at the time of retrieval. For multi-night stays, only the first night’s price is shown. Confirm the final price and directions to the venue with the booking provider. Select your dates again when using the area search link. Search area: within 3 km of Central Saitama Prefecture / Ageo City (the search is not centered on the festival venue)

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Origins and History of The Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival

Doroinkyo is an event held as part of the Gion Festival at Yae Shrine.

In the Meiji era, the mikoshi made its rounds as part of a festival shared by the 4 districts of Minami, Shimojuku, Kamijuku, and Shinden. The “Yae Shrine Diary” from Meiji 42 records repairs to the “inkyo mikoshi.”

The procession shared by the 4 districts ended after Taisho 12, but it was fully revived in the Kamijuku district in Showa 48. It was designated a city cultural property in Showa 57 and a prefectural Intangible Folk Cultural Property in Heisei 23.

Source: 平方上宿の祇園祭どろいんきょ

Official information

The Ageo City official website provides an overview of the Doroinkyo Event of the Hirakata Gion Festival, information about its designation as a cultural property, and details of how the event unfolds.

The organization that preserves the event is the Hirakata Doroinkyo Preservation Society.