Gion Matsuri

Overview

The Gion Matsuri is the festival of Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto City, one of the Three Great Festivals of Japan, with a tradition spanning more than 1,100 years. Beginning with the kippuiri on July 1 and continuing until it closes with the Ekijinja Nagoshi-sai on July 31, various sacred rites and events unfold over the course of about a month.

The highlight of the festival is the yamahoko procession, in which gorgeous floats parade through the streets of Kyoto. It is held in two parts, the saki-matsuri on July 17 and the ato-matsuri on July 24, and the yamahoko, adorned with intricate textiles and works of art, are praised as moving museums. The Yamahoko Float Ceremony of the Kyoto Gion Festival is registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, and its history and cultural value are recognized worldwide.

History and Origins

The origins of the Gion Matsuri go back to the year 869 (Jogan 11) in the early Heian period. In this year, when an epidemic spread throughout the capital of Kyoto and other parts of Japan, an imperial command led to the raising of 66 pikes, corresponding to the number of provinces of the country at the time, and a portable shrine was sent from Gion Sha (present-day Yasaka Shrine) to the Shinsen-en garden to pray for the removal of calamity. This is said to be the beginning of the festival. It was called the Gion Goryo-e, a rite to appease plague deities and vengeful spirits.

From the middle of the Heian period, the scale grew larger, and dengaku and sarugaku performances were added, showing a lively prosperity. In the Muromachi period, the Gion Sha Ki records that the various towns produced their own distinctive yamahoko floats.

The capital was reduced to ashes by the Onin War (1467), and the Gion Matsuri was suspended for a time, but it was revived in 1500 (Meio 9). At this time, the kuji-tori-shiki, the ceremony to decide the order of the yamahoko procession, began. Thereafter, through the efforts of the townspeople, the decoration of the yamahoko came to be lavished with great luxury. In early modern times, many yamahoko were lost to repeated fires, but each time they were restored through the spirit of the townspeople and have been handed down to the present.

Living within the festival is also the faith surrounding the amulet inscribed Descendant of Somin Shorai. It derives from the tale, preserved in a fragment of the Bingo no Kuni Fudoki, of Somin Shorai, who welcomed the deity Susanoo-no-Mikoto. The legend that one who calls himself a descendant of Somin Shorai and wears a chi-no-wa reed ring will be spared from epidemic flows at the root of the festival.

Highlights

The Yamahoko Procession　The greatest highlight of the festival is the yamahoko procession held in the saki-matsuri (July 17) and the ato-matsuri (July 24). The sight of large and small yamahoko, adorned with intricate decoration, advancing through the streets of Kyoto is magnificent, and their splendor earns them the name of moving museums.

The Tsujimawashi　During the procession, the tsujimawashi, in which the heavy yamahoko is turned 90 degrees at an intersection, is one of the foremost spectacles of the parade. Green bamboo is laid under the wheels and water is sprinkled to help them slide, and the technique of turning the direction in one motion to shouted calls draws great cheers.

The Atmosphere of Yoiyama　During the yoiyama period before the procession, the yamahoko are lit with koma-gata lanterns and Gion-bayashi music is played, dyeing the whole town in festival color. The Gion-bayashi, ringing out with kon-chiki-chin, is a sound unique to Kyoto, played on kane gongs, taiko drums, and flutes.

Protective Chimaki　During the yoiyama period, each town of the yamahoko bestows chimaki, which bring their own blessings. These are amulets against epidemic and misfortune, prepared from bamboo leaves, bearing the Descendant of Somin Shorai charm, and hung under the eaves.

Varied Sacred Rites　From the kippuiri on July 1, through the portable shrine procession, to the closing Ekijinja Nagoshi-sai on July 31, varied sacred rites are conducted throughout the month, conveying the depth of the festival.

Event Information and Access

Period　About one month each year, from July 1 to July 31.

Yamahoko Procession　Saki-matsuri: July 17 / Ato-matsuri: July 24.

Venue　Yasaka Shrine in Kyoto City and the various yamahoko towns, along with the procession route.

Main Rites　Kippuiri (July 1), yoiyama, the yamahoko procession, the portable shrine procession, and the Ekijinja Nagoshi-sai (July 31), among others.

Cultural Standing　One of the Three Great Festivals of Japan. The Yamahoko Float Ceremony of the Kyoto Gion Festival is a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Access　Yasaka Shrine is conveniently reached from Gion-Shijo Station on the Keihan Main Line and Kyoto-Kawaramachi Station on the Hankyu Kyoto Line. During the yoiyama and procession periods, large-scale traffic restrictions and pedestrian zones are set up in the central city, so use of public transportation is recommended.

Surrounding Area

Kyoto City, where the Gion Matsuri takes place, is a historic city that was the capital of Japan for more than a thousand years since the relocation of the capital in the Heian period, and countless shrines, temples, and traditional cultures live on there today. Yasaka Shrine, the center of the festival, sits at the foot of Higashiyama in Kyoto, at the eastern edge of the Gion district, and has long attracted deep faith as a deity that wards off epidemic.

Before the gate of Yasaka Shrine spreads the townscape of Gion, with its stone-paved streets and machiya townhouses preserved, where one can savor the atmosphere characteristic of Kyoto. Even outside the festival season, a visit to Yasaka Shrine can be combined with a tour of nearby famous sites such as Kiyomizu-dera, the Yasaka Pagoda, and Hanamikoji.

Kyoto is home to the Three Great Festivals of Kyoto, together with the Aoi Matsuri (May) and the Jidai Matsuri (October), and the Gion Matsuri is the festival that represents its summer. Combining a visit to the festival with the food culture and machiya scenery of Kyoto allows one to savor more deeply the culture of faith and daily life that lives on in the thousand-year-old capital.

Related Information

• Name: Gion Matsuri (Gion Goryo-e)
• Location: Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture (Yasaka Shrine and the various yamahoko towns)
• Period: July 1 to July 31 each year
• Yamahoko Procession: Saki-matsuri July 17 and Ato-matsuri July 24
• Origin: The Gion Goryo-e of 869 (Jogan 11), a prayer for driving away epidemic
• Character: One of the Three Great Festivals of Japan; the festival of Yasaka Shrine
• Cultural Property: The Yamahoko Float Ceremony of the Kyoto Gion Festival is a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
• Main Highlights: The yamahoko procession, tsujimawashi, yoiyama, Gion-bayashi, and chimaki

← Explore More Festivals