Miyaichi-Sai Summer Festival in Utsunomiya

Miyaichi-Sai or Miyaichi summer festival was held for three days last week.

The festival is held on a period between the rainy season and the hot summer season expressing people's joy of coming summer.

Hustle and bustle of the festival remind the citizens of the arrival of the summer.

Chinowa Kuguri Ceremony

A large ring or Chinowa made of grass is erected on the pathway leading to a shrine.

Worshipers at the shrine pass through the ring as an act of purification from misdeeds, impurities, or bad luck.

Participants pass through the ring reciting a verse invoking long life and avoiding diseases.

Ceremonies of passing through the ring, sacred music and dancing are dedicated to the shrine on the ceremony day.

Hydrangea Flowers and a Dragonfly

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The picture on the left was taken a few weeks ago at Isoyama shrine.



The following picture was taken at the same place ten years ago, June 2005.

Rina, left on the photo, is now a college student was an elementary school kid at that time.

Rina and Kiyono in 2005

I Go to Isoyama Shrine in Kanuma City

We are still in the middle of rainy season.

I picked up a sunny day among this rainy season and headed to Isoyama shrine which had tens of hundreds of hydrangea flowers at its garden.

Those pictures show how I take photos usually.










The shrine was preparing to hold a hydrangea festival.

Though we went there just several days before the festival period, the flowers were in full bloomed.