🏮 Hassaku Sai
八朔祭
Kyoto (Matsuo Grand Shrine) · Every year on the 1st Sunday of September
356 days to go
Rooms around Kyoto fill up while the festival is on.
The Hassaku Festival held at Matsuo Taisha is a traditional event tied to the first day of the eighth month in the old lunar calendar. Because this time of year sees much damage from typhoons and pests, it is held to pray for favorable weather, a bountiful harvest of the five grains, and household safety. The festival has a long history, and the Hassaku sumo wrestling that has continued since the Kamakura period is well known. On the day itself, offerings such as the Saga Rokusai Nenbutsu Odori (an intangible cultural asset) and the Kamikatsura Goryo Daiko, a procession of the female mikoshi (portable shrine) through Arashiyama, and children's mikoshi parades are held in succession. After sunset on the previous day, the lanterns in the grounds are lit, and a bon dance gathering is also held. With diverse Shinto rituals and local performing arts offered one after another, the Hassaku Festival continues to be passed down today as a traditional event of Matsuo Taisha, praying for a bountiful harvest and household safety during a season prone to disasters.
Getting there
20 minutes on foot from JR Saga-Arashiyama Station, or immediately after getting off the Kyoto Bus at Matsuo Taisha-mae.
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Local specialities
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