Higashibōjō Hōran'ya

On 15 August the bearers of Higashibōjō go round the shrine with torches of up to 3 metres in height, 2 in diameter and 500 kilos, shouting ‘Essā hoisā’.

The largest torches are made of rapeseed chaff, wheat straw, sasa and green bamboo. The festival involves two shrines, the Kasuga and the Hachiman of Higashibōjō-chō, and was designated an intangible folk cultural property on 16 March 2020.

The Higashibōjō Hōran'ya (ホーランヤ) is a fire festival held in the Higashibōjō-chō neighbourhood of Kashihara (Nara), between Kasuga Shrine (春日神社, 東坊城町1029) and Hachiman Shrine (八幡神社, 東坊城町857), about 4 minutes' walk from Kintetsu Bōjō Station. On 16 March 2020 it was designated an intangible folk cultural property requiring documentation (記録作成等の措置を講ずべき無形の民俗文化財). Kasuga Shrine is the tutelary shrine of the four neighbourhoods of Yumiba, Ōkita, Degaki and Kawabata, and is dedicated to the fire deity.

ℹ️ It takes place every year on 15 August. The bearers are men aged 15 and over from the Higashibōjō neighbourhoods and nearby Furukawa, organised today through the Hōran'ya Hosankai association; the torches are carried in procession through the grounds of the two shrines to the centre, where they burn as an offering.

🚉 Bōjō · 4 min walk

Sources: yamatoji.nara-kankou.or.jp · yamatoji.nara-kankou.or.jp · online.bunka.go.jp

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