🏮 Hatsukayama Matsuri

二十日夜祭

Hiraizumi, Iwate (Motsuji Temple) · Every year on 20 January

Traditional performing arts

128 days to go
Rooms around Hiraizumi, Iwate fill up while the festival is on.

At Motsu-ji Temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, the Hatsuka-yasai is held every year on the night of January 20, during the coldest part of winter. It is a ritual for Matara-shin, enshrined in Jogyo-do Hall, and is known as a traditional event combining motion and stillness, blending the esoteric rites practiced since the temple's founding with the Somin ritual performed by local residents. The origin of this festival is said to lie in the combination of the rites dating back to the founding of Motsu-ji and the Somin ritual handed down in the local area. The Ennen-no-mai dance, a nationally designated Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property, is offered, and prayers are made for a good harvest and good health in the bitter cold below freezing. What stands out is the elegant offering of the ancient Ennen-no-mai dance and the way it becomes one with the Somin ritual in which residents take part. Amid the distinctive atmosphere where quiet Buddhist rites and lively folk belief intermingle, attendees pray for peace in the new year.