Spring and “springtime” refer to the season, and also to ideas of rebirth, rejuvenation, renewal, resurrection and regrowth. Spring is the time when many plants begin to grow and flower.
And, spring Festival could refer to any festival related to the Spring season. Here are some of the most popular Japanese spring festivals.
Matsuris are traditional Japanese festivals and each of them has a long history. The date and nature of each festival are different from community to community. Matsuris are powerful, energetic, exciting and enjoyable – everybody is always welcome to participate.
Crying Baby Festival ☆
Crying Baby Festival (Naki-zumo) is held from spring to autumn all around Japan. This Festival involves parents handing their babies to friendly sumo wrestlers to see if they will cry. The baby who cries the loudest wins the match.
A display of thousands of traditional Japanese dolls for Girls Day in Katsuura, a small fishing village in Chiba. The town sets out 25,000 dolls for the festival. About 1,000 are placed on the 62 steps of Tomisaki Shrine.
Here is everything about anime. One of the largest Anime event in Japan. AnimeJapan is a Japanese anime consumer show which was held for the first time at the Tokyo Big Sight exhibition center in Tokyo, in March 2014.
It was created from the merger of the Tokyo International Anime Fair with the Anime Contents Expo.
Kanamara Matsuri ☆
🔵 Kawasaki-city, Kanagawa prefecture (early in April)
The Shinto Kanamara Matsuri is held each spring at the Kanayama Shrine in Kawasaki, Japan. The exact dates vary: the main festivities fall on the first Sunday in April.
A fertility festival in Kawasaki that has become popular with tourists. The festival raises money for HIV research.
The Onbashira Matsuri is a dangerous festival that often takes the lives of participants and spectators. It’s held every 6 years (year of the monkey and tiger) in Suwa, Nagano prefecture. Giant cedar trees are cut from a mountain primordial forest.
Four large trees are selected that are up to 20 meters (65 feet) tall and weight up to 3 tons. They are used to repair Suwa Taisha Shrine. They are blessed, cut and delivered to the shrine in the ancient traditional way.
This means racing the giant trees down the mountain like a sled (with participants riding on top). The festival attracts 2 million spectators.
Many Japanese festivals have a carnival atmosphere — drinking, dancing and excitement. Japan also has thousands of quiet festivals. The Fuji Shibazakura Festival is one such festival. It’s one of the most photogenic festivals in the World.
Approximately 80,000 red, pink and white Shibazakura (mountain phlox flowers) are planted in a 2.4 hectare area with Mount Fuji in the background. The festival is timed with their bloom (late April ~ late May).
A massive dancing festival that features unique costumes. According to local dance customs women clap wooden spoons (shamoji) together as they dance.
The festival dates back to 1179. It was banned by the Meiji Emperor (1852 – 1912) who thought it was a waste of resources. It was restored after WWII as a way to raise the spirits of local residents.
Foxes are sometimes considered Shinto gods. In other cases, foxes are considered the messengers of Inari, the Shinto god of fertility, rice, agriculture and business.
In Japanese myth, foxes play tricks on humans. This often involves shapeshifting into human form. In myth, foxes sometimes trick humans into marrying them. Foxes also marry each other in Japanese myth. The Shinkawa Market Festival recreates a mythical fox wedding.
The Aoi (Hollyhock) Matsuri is one of Kyoto’s oldest festivals dating back more than 1200 years. The main feature is an hour long procession of celebrants dressed in ancient aristocratic fashions.
Some 500 people wearing splendid ancient costumes and traditional make-up parade through the main streets of Kyoto.
Sanja Festival is unquestionably Tokyo’s wildest festival known for its huge and somewhat rowdy crowds. The festival features mikoshi parades and dancing. There are also side events such as rare performances by Tokyo’s geisha.
