Itabashi Suwa Jinja Ta-Asobi
Itabashi Suwa Jinja Ta-Asobi
The festival known as Itabashi Suwa Jinja Ta-Asobi, held at the Suwa Shrine in Tokyo, began as a thanksgiving ritual to the god of the rice paddies ( Ta-no-kami ) in return for the granting of a plentiful harvest. There is also a mikoshi parade—mikoshi are the portable shrines or palanquins identified with the gods during their visits to earth—singing, and food. One area is set aside for the performance of traditional dances, which include a rice-planting dance, a weeding dance, a chasing-away-the-bird dance, and a fertility dance. At the end of the festival, a big bonfire is lighted and huge drums are played.
Association for Itabashi International Communications
Itabashi City Hall
2-66-1 Itabashi-ku
Tokyo, 173-8501 Japan
81-3-3579-2015; fax: 81-3-3579-4211
www.city.itabashi.tokyo.jp/c_kurashi/005/005929.ht
JapanFest-1965, pp. 92, 119