Yamada Yasaka Shrine Gion Festival

Festival highlights

A highlight is when young men wearing white fundoshi loincloths rush into the mikoshi hall, kick down its wooden doors, and pull out the mikoshi.

The mikoshi is handled roughly even on the grounds of the former Kitaura Kindergarten, where it is dropped to the ground and turned upside down.

After that, it is thrown into a lotus root field, where it and its bearers end up covered in mud.

Another feature is the Ohamaguri descent ceremony, in which the mikoshi is repeatedly submerged in Lake Kitaura.

Yamada’s wild Gion Festival, where the mikoshi takes on mud and water

What to expect

After the ritual, about 30 young men wearing white fundoshi loincloths rush into the mikoshi hall, kick down its wooden doors, and pull the mikoshi outside.

They support the mikoshi itself without attaching carrying poles, then drop it to the ground or turn it upside down to the chant, “One, two, three!”

Children also crawl beneath the mikoshi when it is lifted high.

After the Ohamaguri descent, 2 live carp are offered to the mikoshi, which has been purified in Lake Kitaura. Once it returns to the temporary shrine, the nighttime dashi procession begins.

How to take part

必要人数：若者およそ30人

Location and access

Venue and address

Yamada Yasaka Shrine (1284 Yamada, Namegata)

Address 1284 Yamada, Namegata City, Ibaraki Prefecture

Dates and season

Season

Every year, the last Saturday through Sunday of July

Frequency

Once a year

Accommodation and hotels PR

Nearby attractions

Nearby is Kitaura Onsen Kitauraso.

This day-use hot spring is located at the foot of Rokko Ohashi Bridge and is described as a facility that opened in Showa 43.

It is located at 1210 Yamada, Namegata.

Parks and gardensNamegata City

霞ヶ浦ふれあいランド

茨城県行方市にあるレジャー施設

Visit the official page ↗ⓘ Photo and data sources

Photo and data sources×

写真：Abasaa / Public domain

Photo source ·

Facility data source

Attractions in the same municipality. Check each attraction’s official website for travel distances from the venue and current opening information.

Origins and History of Yamada Yasaka Shrine Gion Festival

According to legend, a mikoshi that rampaged through various places was abandoned in Shirahama, Namegata City, and drifted to the lakeshore at Yamada.

The people of Yamada feared the mikoshi and enshrined it at Yamada Yasaka Shrine, but the story goes that they began making it rampage once a year to please the spirit of the mikoshi.

The way the mikoshi is handled and the Ohamaguri descent ceremony featured today are characteristics of the festival linked to this legend.

Yamada Yasaka Shrine Gion Festival at a Glance

The Yamada Yasaka Shrine Gion Festival is a traditional event in Namegata’s Yamada district, held to pray for abundant harvests and good health.

A major feature is the “rampaging mikoshi” and the Ohamaguri descent ceremony, in which young men handle the mikoshi roughly and take it into lotus root fields and Lake Kitaura.

After the mikoshi is purified, a live carp is offered. The ceremony then continues with the mikoshi being enshrined at the temporary shrine and dashi processions taking place at night.