F E S T I V A L ／ FEST-184

Shirotori Shrine Omikan-yaki (Ohitaki Fire Festival)

白鳥神社 おみかん焼き（お火焚祭）しろとりじんじゃ おみかんやき

Every December 8 at Shirotori Shrine in Higashikagawa — dedicated to the hero-deity Yamato Takeru — old talismans and ritual implements collected over the year are sent off in a rite and then burned, and the year's mandarins are roasted in the sacred flames. Skewered on long bamboo sticks and held over the consecrated fire, the roasted mandarins are eaten in the belief that they ward off colds and bring a year of good health. This unusual fire rite, combining the ohitaki bonfire with citrus, is known locally as 'omikan-yaki' and is said to date from the Koka era (1845–48), later shifted from the lunar to the solar calendar to settle on December 8. Mandarins are sold in front of the shrine for visitors to roast on the spot.