Yoshida Fire Festival

Overview

Yoshida no Himatsuri (吉田の火祭) is a sacred fire festival held annually on August 26 and 27 at Kitaguchi Hongu Fuji Sengen Shrine and Suwa Shrine in Fujiyoshida City, Yamanashi Prefecture. It marks the closing of the summer climbing season on Mount Fuji and was designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan in 2012. It is considered one of Japan's three most unusual festivals (Nihon san-kisai).

History

While its precise origins are unclear, the festival is believed to have taken shape between the late Heian and Kamakura periods as a ritual deeply tied to Mount Fuji worship. Mount Fuji has been revered as a sacred mountain since ancient times, with pilgrim ascents permitted only during a brief summer window. Held at the end of August to mark the close of the climbing season, the festival lights enormous torches to express gratitude for safe descents and to purify impurities through the cleansing power of fire.

Highlights

On August 26, during the Chinka-sai (fire-pacifying festival), over 70 massive torches — each about 3 meters tall and 90 cm in diameter — are erected along Honcho-dori in central Fujiyoshida and lit simultaneously in the evening. Pillars of flame rise into the sky, bathing the entire town in red — a spectacle of remarkable scale. Each household also constructs lattice-shaped torches in front of their homes, transforming the streets into a corridor of fire. On August 27, during the Susuki Matsuri (pampas grass festival), parishioners bearing pampas-grass tamagushi offerings carry the Suwa Shrine portable shrine back to its resting place. The fusion of fire and mountain worship, with Mount Fuji as a backdrop, projects a mystique found nowhere else.

Event Information

The venues are Kitaguchi Hongu Fuji Sengen Shrine, Suwa Shrine, and Honcho-dori in Kamiyoshida, Fujiyoshida City, Yamanashi Prefecture. The nearest station is Fujisan Station on the Fujikyu Railway, about a 5-minute walk away. The festival is held annually on August 26 (Chinka-sai) and August 27 (Susuki Matsuri), with the lighting of the great torches beginning around 6:30 PM on August 26. Admission is free, but Honcho-dori becomes extremely crowded from early evening, so arriving early is recommended. As this is a fire festival, avoid flammable clothing and maintain a safe distance from the flames.

Nearby Attractions

Fujiyoshida City sits at the northern foot of Mount Fuji, and Kitaguchi Hongu Fuji Sengen Shrine — the central stage of the festival — is a component asset of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Fujisan." Fuji-Q Highland amusement park and the Fuji Five Lakes (including Lake Yamanaka and Lake Kawaguchi) are also nearby, making it easy to combine the festival with summer sightseeing around Mount Fuji. The local specialty Yoshida udon is a recommended meal before or after the festival.

← Explore More Festivals