Yabusame Shinji of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Kanagawa

A festival with history and tradition that has been going on for more than 800 years

Kamakura of Kanagawa Prefecture, which is an ancient capital and is also popular from overseas as a sightseeing spot. The famous shrine of this place is “Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine“. “Rei-taisai” (regular rites and festivals) to be held at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine is a popular festival where visitors come from all over the country as well as in Kamakura.
Rei-taisai is held every 3 days from September 14th to 16th every year. This “Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Rei-taisai” is originated from “Hojo-e” (Rite to show thanks and respect to living creatures) and “Yabusame” (the art of shooting arrows on horseback), which was done by Minamoto no Yoritomo in the Kamakura period in 1180. It is a festival with history and tradition that has been going on for more than 800 years. The autumn festival near the Kanto region is a festival with many heighlites.
Because it is a historical shrine, everyone who participates in the Shinto ritual wears traditional clothes. It is such a rigorous festival that you forget that this is modern Japan.

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Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Kanagawa

https://diversity-finder.net/tourism/tsurugaoka-hachimangu-shrine-kanagawa

Kamakura is a sightseeing spot that is easily accessible not only in Kanagawa Prefecture but also in Tokyo, about an hour by train from the city center.Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine is about a 10-minute walk from Kamakura Station, the center of tourism, and is famous as one of the most popular tourist spots in Kamakura. There are many important cultural properties in the shrine with a history of over 1000 years, and many tourists visit throughout the year. Within the large precincts, there are...

Among the many Shinto rituals, the most famous event is “Yabusame.” At the Yabusame Riding Ground in the shrine’s precincts, the archer wearing the hunt’s clothes shoots three places, one after another, while straddling the running horse. Many tourists visit each year to see the brave shape.
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine’s Yabusame is held twice, in the autumn of Rei-taisai and spring ‘Kamakura Festival.’ The Yabusame of the spring Kamakura Festival is hosted by the Kamakura Tourist Association, so there are paying seats. On the other hand, the autumn’s Rei – taisai is a Shinto ritual by Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, so, unfortunately, there are no selling seats for advance sale. Therefore, if you want to see it in front of you as much as possible, you need to go early and secure a place. Yabusame will be done after 14 o’clock. From 12 o’clock, the viewer’s seat is crowded with people, so if you go from there and secure a place, you can see it in the front.
You can see the shooter dressed in the Kamakura period‘s hunting clothes shoots “Kaburaya” (a whistling arrow) shooter on its running horses. Please check out a powerful event by your eyes.

Charms and Highlights of Yabusame Shinji of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine

“Yabusame Shinji” performed especially on September 16th

The “Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine Reitaisai Festival” is to be performed every year in Tsuruoka-shi, Kanagawa, in September. Since it started in 1187, there have been history and tradition for more than 800 years.
The festival is performed for three days from September 14. Many tourists visit “Yabusame Shinji (horseback archery event),” performed especially on the 16th.

Shoot the mark setting in the riding ground with an arrow while running horseback

The Shinto festival of 800 years to shoot the mark set in the riding ground with an arrow while running horseback. In Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, it was the beginning to have dedicated Yabusame in the Yoritomo Minamoto time as an annual festival called Hojo-e (Rite to show thanks and respect to living creatures).
Now, the Ogasawara school is dedicated to Yabusame performed in September every year.

Very difficult for an archer to shoot arrows at a target while riding a horse

When Yabusame Shinji approaches, the maintenance of the riding ground is carried out in Tsurugaoka Hachimangu. The width of this riding ground is made narrowly so as not to think that a horse runs through it. It is complicated for an archer to shoot arrows at a target while riding a horse at a narrow riding ground.

Spectacular the horse zipping past us at breakneck speed

In this shrine ritual, many people flock to the precincts. In an intense atmosphere, it is spectacular the horse zipping past us at breakneck speed. At the greatest highlight when an arrow is shot, it is mixed by the sigh and cheer of admiration and brings a lot of excitement.

Popular among the tourists from the foreign countries recently

It is recommended you to see at once the spectacle in which archer who was wearing in the hunting costume shoots a mark from on the horse which runs with sufficient vigor. It seems to be popular among not only domestic people but also tourists from foreign countries recently.

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