A walking archery ritual in Masuma, where arrows aimed at a target foretell the rice harvest
Masuma Onmato Shinji
Festival information
EVENT INFORMATION- Season / frequency
- Annually on March 1 / Every year
- Location
- Hie Shrine
- Area
- Chiba Prefecture・Minamiboso City(From Tokyo: approx. 40 min–1 h · 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
- Required number of participants
- 2 archers
- Last updated
- 2026/11/11
A walking archery ritual passed down at Hie Shrine in Masuma, Minamiboso City, in which the rice harvest’s prospects are divined from the arrows’ hits on the target. You can observe the full sequence of local practices, from preparing a large target through purification, archery, and reporting the results.
About Masuma Onmato Shinji
The Masuma Onmato is a walking archery ritual held annually at Hie Shrine in Masuma, Minamiboso City.
Arrows are shot at a target, and the results are used to divine whether the rice harvest will be good or poor, among other things.
Before the ritual, the target is prepared in a process called matohari at an old family home known as the kagimoto household. The target is about 1.8 m in diameter.
A festival rite passed down at the Masuma district’s ujigami shrine and designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Chiba Prefecture.
Festival highlights
Highlights include the large target, made by weaving dwarf bamboo, pasting on paper, and drawing concentric circles in ink, and the arrows shot toward it.
For the archery, 2 archers stand at their designated spot on the side, about 43 m from the target, and take turns shooting arrows.
The arrows are shot in 3 groups—early-, mid-, and late-maturing varieties—with 12 arrows in each group, for a total of 36.
The results of the shots are recorded and used to divine the weather, suitable crops, and whether the harvest will be good or poor.
A walking archery ritual in Masuma, where arrows aimed at a target foretell the rice harvest
What to expect
On the morning of the event, the 2 archers bathe in freshly heated water at the kagimoto household, then purify themselves by bathing in the water at Korinofuchi.
Afterward, they change into montsuki haori and hakama, offer a bow and rice cakes in the tokonoma, eat a rice cake, and prepare for the walking archery ritual.
Prayers and other rites are held at the shrine from around 1 p.m., followed by an archery ceremony in the for about 1 hour from around 3:30 p.m.
Afterward, the results are reported before the kami, and printed materials are distributed to worshippers and others who request them.
How to take part
The archers are 2 young men selected from particular families.
No information is provided about registration, reservations, or fees for anyone other than the archers.
Location and access
- Venue and address
Hie Shrine, Masuma, Minamiboso City
Address Masuma, Minamiboso City
Dates and season
- Season
Annually on March 1
- Frequency
Every year
Accommodation and hotels PR
Showing nearby accommodation.
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 Chiba Prefecture / Minamiboso City (the search is not centered on the festival venue)
Nearby attractions
野島埼灯台
千葉県南房総市にある灯台
写真：ガウス at Japanese Wikipedia / CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo source ·Origins and History of Masuma Onmato Shinji
The Masuma Onmato Shinji is a walking archery ritual passed down at Hie Shrine, the ujigami shrine of the Masuma district.
According to prefectural records, it was designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Chiba Prefecture in Showa 38May 4.
The ritual involves local households and the shrine, including the traditional preparation of the target and archers selected from particular families.
No information is provided about its more distant origins or founding date, or about changes in recent years.
Official information
An introduction to the prefecture-designated Intangible Folk Cultural Property that the Chiba Prefectural Board of Education presents as the “Masuma Onmato Shinji.”
It covers where the tradition is practiced, an overview of the event, target preparation, the archers’ purification, and the timing and method of the archery.
Masuma Onmato Shinji at a Glance
The Masuma Onmato Shinji is a walking archery ritual passed down at Hie Shrine in Masuma, Minamiboso City.
Two archers shoot a total of 36 arrows at a large target made at the kagimoto household, and the results are used to divine whether the rice harvest will be good or poor, among other things.
After prayers at around 1 p.m., archery is performed for about 1 hour from around 3:30 p.m., and the results are finally reported before the kami.
It is held annually on March 1 and is designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Chiba Prefecture.
Sources and references
Japanese Festivals.jp Editorial Team
Celebrating local culture and helping you discover a side of Japan you never knew.
Article updated: 2026/11/11
