Hiraya no Nagashitai

Festival highlights

Highlights include the tai, a platform about 3 meters in diameter, and the torch set upright on it.

A base of wheat straw is fitted with a frame of green bamboo, and the tips of the bamboo are split into strips to make the torch.

Local people watch the lit tai drift down the Oi River until it disappears into the distance.

Hiraya’s summer tradition: sending a flaming tai down the Oi River, carrying prayers onward

What to expect

For the event, wheat straw is braided to make a base, and a frame of green bamboo is assembled to complete the tai.

According to past event records, participants gathered on the Oi River riverbank and spent about 1 hour making the tai.

Once completed, the tai is lit and prayers are offered before it is set afloat to commemorate flood victims.

How to take part

Local residents take the lead in preparations and making the tai. Past records show that 4th-grade elementary school students have also taken part as part of their local studies.

Children, guided by local residents, made “children’s tai,” smaller than the regular tai.

Check the event-day information to find out whether general visitors can take part in making or offering the tai.

Location and access

Venue and address

Held on the Oi River riverbank in the Hiraya district.

Source: 年間行事／川根本町公式ホームページ

Event venue 静岡県川根本町 平谷地区の大井川河川敷

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

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Dates and season

Season

Every year at dusk on July 14

Frequency

Every year

Accommodation and hotels PR

Origins and History of Hiraya no Nagashitai

Its origins are said to date to a great flood in July of Bunsei 11 (1828), during the Edo period. At that time, lanterns were offered to Tsushima Shrine, a water deity, to comfort the spirits of those who died in an epidemic.

In the past, young men could be seen riding on the platform as it went down the river, showered with sparks.

The event continued without being suspended even during wartime, and is now designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property by Kawanehoncho.

Official information

The Kawanehoncho official website introduces the origins of Hiraya no Nagashitai, how the tai are made, and scenes from past events.

For inquiries, contact the Social Education Division of the Kawanehoncho Board of Education.

The listed phone number for inquiries is 0547-58-7080.

Hiraya no Nagashitai at a Glance

Hiraya no Nagashitai is an event in which a tai made from green bamboo and wheat straw is lit and set afloat on the Oi River to commemorate flood victims.

It is said to have begun in the wake of the great flood of 1828 (Bunsei 11), and has been passed down in the community.

Every year at dusk on July 14, the tradition of seeing off the flaming tai is observed on the Oi River riverbank in the Hiraya district.