🎎 Shitenno-ji Shuseikai Ketsugyo Ceremony (DOYA DOYA)

The "Shitenno-ji," the head temple of the Japanese sect founded by Prince Shotoku, holds the "Shusho-e" ceremony from New Year's Day, praying for national peace and abundant harvests. On January 14, the day of the ceremony's conclusion, the "DOYA DOYA" festival is celebrated, which is said to be Osaka's only naked festival. After the conclusion ceremony is held inside the temple, men dressed in red and white loincloths and headbands gather in the temple grounds to compete for the talismans that have been blessed during the ceremony. This traditional festival began in the Edo period and has a history of over 300 years, being listed as one of Japan's "Three Great Strange Festivals." In the past, local farmers participated, divided into eastern and western teams, but now local high school students take part. The origin of the festival's name "DOYA DOYA" is debated; one theory suggests that participants chant "DOYA, DOYA" (meaning "How is it? How is it?") while asking the deities about the year's harvest, while another theory claims it is named for the crowd of participants filling the temple grounds (with "DOYA DOYA" in Japanese indicating a gathering of people). On the morning of the 14th, there is also the "Shitenno-ji Dondo-yaki," where people bring New Year's decorations, shimekazari, and wooden plaques and amulets used throughout the year to pile up and set on fire.

The famous festival event held at Shitennoji Temple in Osaka. It takes place on the 14th of New Year's Day during the Shōgatsu (New Year) celebration. High school students dressed in fundoshi compete to grab the talismans that have been prayed over during the Shōgatsu. It is listed as one of Japan's "Three Great Strange Festivals." On that day, the "Shitennoji Dondo-yaki (四天王寺とんど焼き)" is also held, where wooden plaques and New Year's decorations are burned on-site.