Get yer Yayas out

Yaya Matsuri (Ya Ya Matsuri; Shouting Festival), Owase, Mie Prefecture, Japan (Feb 1 - 8)

Today begin the Yaya or Shouting Festival days at Owase Shrine, Owase, Japan. This unusual calendar custom is a 'Shouting Festival', one of several 'quarrel festivals'.

Young men carrying mikoshi floats crash into each other on the streets, shouting "Yaya! Yaya!", jostling each other before diving into the sea to purify themselves. People whose houses border the routes of such craziness erect protective fences. There is much dancing, and the next year's participants are elected at the shrine on the Yaya festival's final night. The festival also offers archery events and street dancing.

Categories: japan, festivals, calendarcustoms