Shikoku · Tokushima · Kaiyō
Shishikui Gion Festival (Shishikui Yasaka Shrine)
宍喰祇園祭(宍喰八坂神社)
The Gion festival of Yasaka Shrine in Shishikui, Kaiyō, Tokushima. On the eve, the 16th, there are night stalls, offertory fireworks and festival carts lit by bamboo lanterns; on the main day, the 17th, the mikoshi goes down to the shore and the carts and a decorated festival boat, the sekibune, parade through the town. Two halberd floats, Ōyama and Koyama, roofed with green brushwood, are also built. It is a national intangible folk cultural property selected for recording. 16 and 17 July every year.
Next
16–17 July 2027
RegularWorked out from the organiser’s fixed schedule.
255 days away
Every year, 16 July, for 2 days
Future dates: 16 July 2027 · 16 July 2028 · 16 July 2029
Origin
Shishikui’s Yasaka Shrine enshrines Susanoo and has long been dear to ordinary people, according to the town tourism association. The Gion festival is carried by three organisations of the old Shishikui port, Nishibun, Hamabun and Gōbun, according to the Agency for Cultural Affairs at the time of selection. In 1999 it was selected by the national government as an intangible folk cultural property to be recorded; its preservation body is the Yasaka Shrine Gion Festival Promotion Society.
What to look for
On the main day the carts and the decorated sekibune boat follow the mikoshi as it goes down to the shore. The carts and the boat first parade into Yasaka Shrine, then accompany the mikoshi to Ebisu Shrine, with lion dances and other performances along the way (Agency for Cultural Affairs, at the time of selection). On the main day the grand rite is followed by offerings of the lion dance and the Yatsuhashi and Sakiyari dances by the local Noh preservation society, and by a rice-cake scramble (2026). The two halberd floats, Ōyama and Koyama, two storeys high and open inside, roofed with green brushwood, parade from Hachiman-dōri to Yasaka Shrine. On the eve, the carts and the shrine grounds are lit with bamboo lanterns, and offertory fireworks go up.
How to watch
On the main day prayers for road safety, safety at sea, household safety and protection from illness can be requested (2026). It is a neighbourhood festival carried by the people of Shishikui’s three districts, and the carts and the boat are paraded into the shrine as each group’s offering.
If you go
The eve is from the evening of 16 July and the main festival from the morning of the 17th, around Shishikui Yasaka Shrine. The eve’s offertory fireworks number about four hundred and are put off to the 17th in rain (2026). Night stalls open on the eve.
Where
Around Shishikui Yasaka Shrine
Kaiyō, Tokushima
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