Sweat rose as hundreds of naked men fought over a bag of wooden amulets, bringing a dramatic end to Japan’s last thousand-year-old ceremony.
Their passionate chants of “jasso, joyasa” (meaning “evil, go away”) echoed through the cedar forests of Japan’s northern Iwate region, where the secluded Kokokusekiji Temple decided to end the popular annual ritual.
Organizing the event, which attracts hundreds of participants and thousands of visitors each year, has become a heavy burden for aging local devotees, who find it difficult to keep up with the rigors of the rituals.
Considered one of Japan’s strangest festivals, the “Sominsai” festival is the latest tradition affected by Japan’s aging population crisis, which has hit rural communities hard.
“It is very difficult to organize a festival of this size,” said Daigo Fujinami, a resident monk at the temple, which opened in 729.
“You can see what’s going on today – so many people are here and it’s all exciting. But behind the scenes, there’s a lot of ceremony and a lot of work that goes on,” he said.
“I can’t turn a blind eye to difficult realities.”
Aging population
Japanese society is aging faster than most other countries. This trend has forced the closure of countless schools, shops and services, especially in small or rural communities.
The Sominsai Festival at Kokseokji Temple used to last from the seventh day of the lunar calendar until the next morning.
But during the coronavirus pandemic, it has been scaled back to prayer services and smaller ceremonies.
The final festival was a shortened version, ending around 11:00 p.m., but drew the largest crowds in recent memory, local residents said.
As the sun sets, men in white loincloths come to the temple on the hill, bathe in the stream and parade around the temple grounds.
They clenched their fists against the cold winter wind while chanting “jasso Joyasa”.
Some carried small cameras to record their experiences, while dozens of television crews followed the men through the temple’s stone steps and dirt paths.
As the festival reaches its climax, hundreds of men crowd the wooden temple, chanting slogans and fiercely competing for a bag of amulets.
change norms
Toshiaki Kikuchi, a local resident who claimed the amulets and has helped organize the festival for years, said he hoped the ritual would return in the future.
“Even if it’s a different format, I want to keep this tradition alive,” he said after the festival.
“Many things can only be experienced by participating in it personally.”
Many participants and visitors expressed sadness and understanding at the end of the festival.
“This is the last of this great festival that has been going on for 1,000 years. I really want to participate in this festival,” Osaka paramedic Yasuo Nishimura, 49, told AFP.
Other temples across Japan continue to host similar festivals, where men wear loincloths, bathe in icy water, or compete for amulets.
Some festivals are adapting their rules to changing democratic and social norms so that they can continue to exist – such as allowing women to participate in previously male-only ceremonies.
Starting next year, Kukseokji Temple will replace the festival with prayer ceremonies and other methods to continue spiritual practices.
“Japan is facing a declining birth rate, an aging population and a lack of young people to continue various things,” Nishimura said.
“Maybe it’s difficult to continue as we have in the past.”
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
