THE GOD OF RICE FIELD FESTIVAL
(TANOKAMI MATSURI)

February 14

Mori Minashi-Hachiman Jinja (shrine)

Tanokami Matsuri has been kept a form of traditional festival and
was designated for a national intangible cultural folk asset.
It is said that the origin of this festival was based on ta-asobi.
Ta-asobi is an shinto ritual entertainment which cerebrate
a good crop of rice in advance.
Farmers make themselves up as old couples, a leader of rice planters, young female rice planter called saotome, etc.
Then, they show the process of growing rice by mimic play in a shrine.
In this case Asobi means kagura, not games.

On February 7th they elect a shinto priest.
Then they hold shinto rituals every day.
On 14, a procession leave Gassho-mura in the the spa town
for Mori Minashi-Hachiman Jinja (shrine).
It is very exciting when people scramble for the lucks thrown into the spectators:
kishingasa (kind of Japanese traditional hat),
kotakebashi (chopstics ) and dango (a kind of Japanese sweets).
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'06 Jan 6 telにて写真使用許可得