A Hakui ritual entrusting prayers for rain and a good harvest to the enormous Meotoishi
Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival
Festival information
EVENT INFORMATION- Season / frequency
- August 25 / Every year
- Location
- The giant megalith known as Meotoishi, locally called Ōmine in Ōmachi
- Area
- Ishikawa Prefecture・Hakui 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.
- Highlights and activities
- Wishes behind the festival
- Last updated
- 2026/10/26
A rainmaking ritual passed down in Ōmachi, Hakui City, centered on the enormous Meotoishi. The head of the neighborhood association serves as the officiant, giving thanks to the gods and praying for a good harvest.
About Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival
The Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival is a rainmaking ritual passed down in Ōmachi, Hakui City.
It is based on a local tradition that people offered delicacies from the mountains and sea, along with water from Mount Togakushi, to the enormous sacred stone called Meotoishi in Ōmine, a local name for an area in Ōmachi, then prayed while performing a goma fire ritual.
At the festival today, the head of the neighborhood association serves as the officiant, giving thanks to the gods and praying for a good harvest.
It is designated an intangible folk cultural property by the city.
Source: 大町の夫婦石まつり／羽咋市公式ホームページ
Festival highlights
Highlights include the enormous Meotoishi, revered by the local community, and the prayers for rain offered there.
According to local tradition, people offered delicacies from the mountains and sea, along with water from Mount Togakushi in Shinshu, and prayed while performing a goma fire ritual.
The event in which heavy rain is said to have fallen on the seventh day, August 25, is linked to the festival date and prayers for a good harvest.
A Hakui ritual entrusting prayers for rain and a good harvest to the enormous Meotoishi
What to expect
At the festival, people offer delicacies from the mountains and sea, along with water from Mount Togakushi, to Meotoishi, then pray while performing a goma fire ritual.
The head of the neighborhood association serves as the officiant, giving thanks to the gods and praying for a good harvest.
The central event is a rainmaking ritual, expressing in a tangible way the local community’s prayers for agriculture and favorable weather.
Location and access
- Venue and address
The giant megalith known as Meotoishi, locally called Ōmine in Ōmachi
Address Ōmachi, Hakui City
Dates and season
- Season
August 25
- 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 Ishikawa Prefecture / Hakui City (the search is not centered on the festival venue)
Nearby attractions
気多大社
石川県羽咋市寺家町にある神社
Origins and History of Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival
According to local tradition, long ago, after a prolonged spell of scorching weather left the rice crops close to withering, people offered food and water from Mount Togakushi to Meotoishi, then prayed while performing a goma fire ritual. On the seventh day, August 25, heavy rain fell.
Since then, the head of the neighborhood association is said to have served as the officiant on that same day, giving thanks to the gods and praying for a good harvest.
In Heisei 3 February 13, it was designated an intangible folk cultural property by the city.
Official information
Hakui City Official Website, “Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival”
Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival at a Glance
The Ōmachi Meotoishi Festival is a rainmaking ritual held around Meotoishi in Ōmachi, Hakui City.
Against the backdrop of the tradition of offering water from Mount Togakushi and delicacies from the mountains and sea, then praying while performing a goma fire ritual, the head of the neighborhood association gives thanks to the gods and prays for a good harvest.
It is an intangible folk cultural property designated by the city, conveying the community’s prayers for agriculture and favorable weather, linked to the tradition that heavy rain fell on August 25.
Japanese Festivals.jp Editorial Team
Celebrating local culture and helping you discover a side of Japan you never knew.
Article updated: 2026/10/26
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