F E S T I V A L ／ FEST-223
Hamayumi Festival (Mato-bakai)
破魔弓祭（的ばかい）はまゆみさい（まとばかい）
A rough winter festival said to be some 860 years old, held at Shiōji Shrine, the tutelary shrine of Nagasu Town. 'Bakai' means 'to scramble for' in the local dialect, and loincloth-clad men fight to seize a single 'target' (mato) while praying for good health and family safety. The target is a woven straw-and-hemp ring, about 60 cm across and weighing roughly 6 kg, made from the year's new straw, purified and dedicated to the shrine. After the rite, the men wrestle for it from the shrine grounds out into the streets and finally into the waters of the Ariake Sea, sending up sheets of spray as they grapple. In recent years around 100 men take part, and the plunge into the cold sea to scramble for the target has become the festival's greatest spectacle.
H I G H L I G H T S
Highlights
- 01Around 100 loincloth-clad men packed body to body, fighting over a single straw-and-hemp 'target' some 60 cm wide and 6 kg in weight
- 02The contest moving from shrine grounds to street and finally into the Ariake Sea, with the scramble fought amid winter spray
- 03A structure in which winning is worship: the target carried off by the victor becomes a charm for health and family safety
D E E P D I V E