Kyoto2019, 2018, 2017.
Gion Matsuri/Event locations

What does the Gion Festival celebrate?

The Gion Festival (祇園祭, Gion Matsuri) takes place annually during the month of July in Kyoto and is one of the most famous and largest festivals in Japan. It’s formally part of Japan’s indigenous, nature-based Shinto faith, and its original purposes were purification and pacification of disease-causing entities.

Why is Gion Matsuri held?

The Gion Matsuri (Gion Festival) is Kyoto’s biggest annual festival. It’s a multiday event that is equal parts religious observance and raucous street festival. Originally held to pray for deliverance from plague, the festival has evolved into a huge celebration of Kyoto culture.

What happens at Gion Matsuri?

The Gion Matsuri has been held every year since 869 and is the country’s biggest festival. The festival turns the city into a huge party, especially during the two periods in mid-July when elaborately-decorated multi-ton floats are displayed and then pulled through the streets.

What do you called on the highlight in the grand procession during Gion Festival?

yamaboko parade
Yamaboko Floats – The Highlights of the Gion Matsuri The greatest highlight of the Gion Festival is the yamaboko parade. Yamaboko, as mentioned above, is a type of a float (dashi in Japanese), or a platform, that is carried around during a Shinto festival.

Is Matsuri a ritual?

A matsuri generally falls into two parts: the solemn ritual of worship, followed by a joyous celebration. The participants first purify themselves (see harai) by periods of abstinence, which may vary from a number of hours to days, and by bathing (misogi), preferably in salt water.

What happens during Gion Matsuri?

Why is Matsuri called God?

The original purpose of the Japanese cultural festival is to thank God. The etymology of the word “Matsuri” is also “enshrined.” Matsuri refers to the comfort, prayer, show gratitude to the ritual of Nature, and it originates from the indigenous God (Shamanism), Shinto, or Buddhism.

What is the Gion Festival in Japan?

(July 2011) The Gion Festival (祇園祭, Gion Matsuri) takes place annually in Kyoto and is one of the most famous festivals in Japan.

What is Gion Matsuri?

Traditional wooden floats in Gion Matsuri 2014. This festival originated during an epidemic in 869 as part of a purification ritual ( goryo-e) to appease the gods thought to cause fire, floods and earthquakes.

What are the floats called in the yoiyama Festival?

Niwatoriboko float, one of the first to begin the parade. Festival-goers take turns getting on the float through a side building. The floats in the Yoiyama Parade are divided into two groups, the larger Hoko (“halberd”) and the smaller Yama (“mountain”), and are collectively called Yamaboko.

When is Kyoto’s yoiyama 2019?

Kyoto’s downtown area is reserved for pedestrian traffic on the three nights leading up to the massive parade. These nights are known as yoiyama (宵山) on July 16 and July 23, yoiyoiyama (宵々山) on July 15 and July 22, and yoiyoiyoiyama (宵々々山) on July 14 and July 21.