Hijiori 1204th anniversary

July 14th was Hijiori Onsen's 1204th Anniversary!



On the eve of the anniversary, Hijiori men in white uniform marched the town with the torch, chanting " Namu Jizo Bosatsu". Jizo bosatsu is "Ksitigarbha" a guardian of our hometown and hot spring. 



On the morning of the anniversary, Hijiori men in white uniform carried 2 Jizo (one female and one male) to the Hijiori dam to offer prayers to god. We had a ritual of scooping hot spring from one barrel to another.



This year, for the first time, Hijiori community invited 3 men from outside to join as a carrier of Jizo. Alex from USA, Jesse from Finland, and a Japanese guy from Sendai joined the event!


There was another thing new. This year, we had "Mochi Maki". "Mochi" is a rice cake. In many parts of Japan, when building a new house, we do this ritual. The owner of the house throw away lots of mochi, some money and snacks from top of the roof.


It was so exciting to see many kids and elderly people running after mochi! I was too scared to go into the crowd, though... :-b



After "Mochi Maki" was the highlight of the anniversary.  Men in white walked around the town, and the audience splashed hot spring water at them. It is believed that pouring hot water on top of Jizo gives you protection from evil and makes you healthy. 
 

Many people were waiting in front of their house with a bucket of nice warm hot spring.




The Jizo march has finished. After taking off totally wet white uniform and getting dressed, Hijiorians celebrated the success of the event with lots of beer and sake :-)


Alex and Jesse, making a speach. They really liked the event! I was so happy and proud that they were able to experience our amazing culture. They appeared on NHK TV news that night!!


Arigato Alex, Jesse!