Ohitsuwari

3rd Sunday of October
15:00-
Muro Shinmei-sha (shrine)
Nishio City's Intangible Folk Cultural Asset
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Ohitsu is a round, wooden container for cooked rice. Wari means break.
***

Ohitsuwari ceremony started at the end of the Edo period
to pray for a rich harvest.

***
Men who are at an unlucky age, (25, 42, & 61) called yaku-otoko,
struggle with each other to get the ohitsu
which contains Sekihan (lit. red rice) made of sticky rice and red beans.
Right after they are given the ohitsu from a Shinto priest, they start pushing and shoving.
When the cover of the ohitsu is crushed with their bare hands, visitors also join
and scramble to grab the red rice.
It is said that if you eat that red rice, you can live in good health through the year.
This is a very rough and spectacular Shinto ceremony.

Muro Shinmei-sha (shrine)	Main Shrine	Local people come and pray to gods.
Shinto ritual	Shinto ritual	Yaku-otoko

Yaku-Otoko are intodued.	The right priest is trying to hand the ohitsu to the Yaku-otoko, and the left priest is on the watch to pour sweet sake on him.	He is taking the ohitsu just below the sweet sake shower.
He runs to the an open space on the shrines premises with the ohitsu.	The circle of Yaku-Otoko turns and moves around the yard and try to crush the cover of the ohitsu with their fists.	All the participants are enjoying the moment.
Yattaaaa ! I did it ! The cover of the ohitsu was crushed !	Visitors scramble to grab the red rice called sekihan or okowa..	Yaku-otoko share the red rice with visitors.

The cover of the ohitsu is set while the rice is still hot.
So, inside of the ohitsu becomes a partial vacume and it keeps the ohitsus lid on very tight.
So it makes it hard to break the cover.

Empty Ohitsu	A piece of the broken cover.	Sekihan rice handed to the visitors

access
Get off at Nishio Sta. on the Meitetsu Line.
Take Meitetsu Bus bound for Higashi-Okazaki.
Get off at Muroba Stop. Walk 5 min.
(Face to the line and go to the left lane.
Turn to left at the end, then tuen to right at the first T-junction.)


inquiries
Nishio C. Kanko-kyokai
0563-56-2111