A Shinto ritual passed down in Kagata, where actions with rice cakes express wishes for abundant harvests and good health
Okonai of Kagata Shrine
Festival information
EVENT INFORMATION- Season / frequency
- The 3rd day of the New Year
- Location
- Kagata Shrine
- Area
- Osaka Prefecture・Kawachinagano City(From Tokyo: approx. 2 h 30 min–3 h · bullet train)Prefecture-level estimate to a main station or airport, not the venue. Airport access, check-in and onward travel are extra; remote areas and islands can take much longer.
- Wishes behind the festival
- Last updated
- 2026/10/20
A passed down in Kagata, Kawachinagano City, in which ceremonial actions with rice cakes express wishes for abundant harvests and good health. It keeps alive the tradition of syncretic Shinto-Buddhist belief, passed down by the local miyaza.
About Okonai of Kagata Shrine
The Okonai of Kagata Shrine is a Shinto ritual passed down at Kagata Shrine, the ujigami shrine of the former Kagata district in Kawachinagano City.
Today, the event is held on the 3rd day of the New Year, when people pray for abundant harvests and good health through ceremonial actions of rolling and striking rice cakes.
This event preserves a form of syncretic Shinto-Buddhist belief and is passed down by the local miyaza.
Source: 市指定 加賀田神社のオコナイ - 河内長野市ホームページ
Festival highlights
A distinctive feature of the ritual is that, after paying respects to a shaped like a Buddhist statue, participants roll and strike rice cakes.
These actions with the rice cakes are said to have expressed wishes for abundant harvests and good health, as well as to drive away evil spirits and revive the winter-dormant life force of nature and the miyaza members.
Its name comes from Shushōe, a Buddhist ceremony, and the event preserves syncretic Shinto-Buddhist beliefs.
A Shinto ritual passed down in Kagata, where actions with rice cakes express wishes for abundant harvests and good health
What to expect
The ritual begins with paying respects to a shintai shaped like a Buddhist statue.
Next, the rice cakes are rolled and struck in ceremonial gestures, expressing wishes for abundant harvests, good health, and the driving away of evil spirits.
The miyaza oversees the event. In Kagata, an organization that preserves the old form passes down this Shinto ritual.
Location and access
- Venue and address
Kagata Shrine (Kagata, Kawachinagano City)
Address Kagata, Kawachinagano City
Dates and season
- Season
The 3rd day of the New Year
Accommodation and hotels PR
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Origins and History of Okonai of Kagata Shrine
It was originally held on the 8th day of the old New Year and was called Shushōe.
It is said that, due to people’s livelihoods, the date was changed to the 3rd day of the New Year in Showa 30s, and has remained so ever since.
Miyaza groups, once found in every district of the city, now remain only in the Kagata district, where they preserve an old tradition passed down strictly through the male line to the eldest son.
Official information
Kawachinagano City website: “The City-Designated Okonai of Kagata Shrine”
Okonai of Kagata Shrine at a Glance
The Okonai of Kagata Shrine is a city-designated intangible folk cultural property passed down in Kagata, Kawachinagano City.
On the 3rd day of the New Year, people pay their respects to the shintai, then roll and strike rice cakes to pray for abundant harvests and good health.
Originating in the Shushōe ceremony of the old New Year, the event is still carried on by the Kagata district’s miyaza, which preserves its traditional form.
Japanese Festivals.jp Editorial Team
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Article updated: 2026/10/20
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