Festivals

Spring

In early May, when the huge old wisteria at Ju-un Temple is in full bloom, the Fuji (wisteria) Festival is held on temple grounds. Participants can sample rice cakes and watch a tea ceremony beneath the fragrant vines. May is also the month for the Miyuki (or Mikoshi Gyoko) procession at Daisen Temple, a traditional Buddhist ceremony said to date back to the Heian era (794-1185). The temple’s elaborate portable shrines are paraded through the streets on the shoulders of men dressed all in white. Children in traditional attire and adults dressed as priest-warriors join the parade as well.

Summer

Summer on Mt Daisen officially begins on the first weekend in June, when priests from Daisen Shrine preside over rituals to pray for an accident-free mountain climbing season. The fire ceremony that takes place on this weekend is the shrine’s central summer event. In the evening, about 2,000 participants kindle torches in a sacred fire at the shrine, then descend the pilgrimage road through the woods, torches a blazing wave of fire (in the past the procession went in reverse, with deeply religious participants carrying their torches up the mountainside to the shrine). A daytime ceremony is also held at the mountain summit.

Fall

When the forests turn their fall colors in late October or early November, the town of Daisen holds an Autumn Colors Festival. Events includes a fire ceremony at Daisen Temple in which priests carry sacred lanterns, a photography contest, and in some years the Daisen Warrior Priest Drum Performance.

Winter

On the 23rd of December, a ceremony is held to mark the opening of the ski season. Along with a ritual to pray for a safe ski season, there are ski demonstrations, mochi (rice cake)-making events, and free lift passes for all participants.