🎎 Kasuga Wakamiya On Matsuri (Spring Kasuga Shrine Festival)

The "Kasuga Wakamiya On Matsuri," held by Wakamiya Shrine, which is affiliated with the World Heritage Site "Kasuga Taisha," is a grand festival that prays for a bountiful harvest and the well-being of all people. This festival takes place every July, with the main rituals occurring from December 15 to 18 each year. In 1135, due to heavy rain and flooding that caused famine and the spread of disease, the then regent Fujiwara no Tadataka built a palace of the same scale as the main hall of Wakamiya Shrine to provide relief to the people. He prayed to the deities of Wakamiya, and the following year (1136), the festival "On Matsuri" began at Kasugano to honor the deities. It has been held continuously for nearly 900 years without interruption.

You can enjoy many traditional performances, among which the grand procession with its splendid costumes is particularly eye-catching. During the "Togyosai" held on December 17, about a thousand people dressed in magnificent attire, accompanied by a cavalry of fifty horses, created a breathtaking scene. The Haru no Wakamiya On-Matsuri has been held continuously for nearly 900 years without interruption.