Kurama Himatsuri

Overview

The Kurama Fire Festival (Kurama no Hi-matsuri) is the annual rite of Yuki Shrine, which stands in Kurama in the Sakyo Ward of Kyoto City, held on the night of October 22 each year. Counted among the three great eccentric festivals of Kyoto, it sees some 300 torches, large and small, carried in procession through the village of Kurama, and the blazing flames, the distinctive cry of "Sairei, Sairyo," and the fervor of the men fill the mountain village by night. Staged throughout the settlement along the narrow Kurama road, the sight of the portable shrines descending the steep stone steps amid showering sparks boasts a power and mystery unrivaled among Kyoto's many festivals.

The festival's origins go back to the Heian period. When Yuki Myojin, enshrined in the imperial palace of Heian-kyo, was transferred to Kurama in 940 (Tengyo 3), the villagers are said to have lit torches to illuminate the night road as they welcomed the deity, and this torchlight procession is regarded as the prototype of the fire festival. October 22 falls on the same day as the Jidai Festival held in central Kyoto, but that the two coincide is mere chance. The Kurama Fire Festival is a festival that the local residents themselves have preserved and handed down, with everything from the making of the torches to the running of the day borne by the hands of the villagers of Kurama.

History and Origins

The origins of the Kurama Fire Festival rest on a tradition connected with the founding of Yuki Shrine. Yuki Shrine is said to have been established in 940 (Tengyo 3) as the guardian shrine of Kurama-dera, when Yuki Myojin, originally enshrined in the imperial palace of Heian-kyo, was transferred to Kurama as a protector of the north of the capital. The transfer took place on the night of the ninth day of the ninth lunar month of 940, when the villagers lit torches one after another and carried in the materials while illuminating the night road. This procession of blazing flames is regarded as the prototype of the Kurama Fire Festival.

That said, the large-scale form of the fire festival as it exists today is thought to be surprisingly recent. Records show that a "Kurama Festival" was held from the Edo period, but it became a rite called a "fire festival" only from the late Edo period onward. Because light was needed for the portable shrines to ascend and descend the steep slope in the dead of night, the torches for this purpose are thought to have gradually grown larger and more spectacular, developing into today's fire festival. Faith and practicality combined to shape this distinctive festival of flame.

Until the separation of Shinto and Buddhism in the Meiji era, Yuki Shrine was part of Kurama-dera, and the Kurama Fire Festival was once held as a rite of Kurama-dera. The date of the festival has also changed over time. It was originally held on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month (the day of Yuki Myojin's transfer), but from around 1873 (Meiji 6) it came to be held on October 22 by the new calendar, apparently because the ninth day of the ninth lunar month falls around October 22 in the new calendar. This was fully twenty-two years before the Jidai Festival began. That it falls on the same day as the Jidai Festival is nothing more than a coincidence resulting from each settling on October 22 for its own separate reasons.

After the war, along with the shift of the parishioners' livelihoods from forestry to salaried work and other changes, the festival was suspended once in 1959 (Showa 34). It was revived in 1963 (Showa 38) in a somewhat reduced form and has continued to be held since. Upon its revival, changes were made to ease the burden on those who carry it out, such as ending by late night a rite that had once continued until the following morning. Though its form has changed with the times, the faith and attachment to the region at its root have been handed down unchanged.

Highlights

The Enormous Torches Carried by the Men　The greatest highlight of the fire festival is the torches carried by the villagers. They begin with the "tokkuri torches" carried by small children, progress to the large torches shouldered by elementary and junior high school students, and finally the enormous "kaisho torches" that young men lift together in groups of several appear. The kaisho torches are said to weigh more than 100 kilograms at most, and it is told that in the days when forestry was the livelihood, a single person carried them. The torches are handmade by the residents, made by bundling brushwood cut from the nearby mountains with wisteria vines and roots.

The Cry of "Sairei, Sairyo"　Around 6 p.m., a herald in hunting-robe attire makes the rounds of the village crying "Come to the rite," and at this signal, called the "shinji-bure," the beacon fires at each house are lit and the fire festival begins in earnest. Thereafter, with the distinctive cry of "Sairei, Sairyo," young men bearing lit torches and ceremonial halberds gather toward the resting place (otabisho) of Yuki Shrine. This cry is said to mean "rite, rite" or "rite, the best," and it echoes through the mountain village by night.

The Procession of the Ceremonial Halberds　In the Kurama Fire Festival, not only torches but seven ceremonial halberds (kenboko) are carried in procession. As in other Kyoto festivals, it is thought that the true protagonists were originally not the torches but the ceremonial halberds. It is said that these halberds, developed further, became the yamahoko floats of the Gion Festival. The clear sound of the halberds, swayed and rung while set in place, is believed to ward off evil, conveying the vestige of an ancient rite within the festival of flame.

The Great Torches Before the Kurama-dera Gate and the Climax　Around 9 p.m., some 300 torches, large and small, gather before the gate of Kurama-dera. When all the great torches are assembled, they are stood on the stone steps before the gate, reaching the greatest climax of the fire festival, with numerous torches standing in rows. The area before the gate is covered in heat and sparks, and the great chorus of "Sairei, Sairyo" resounds. The great torches that have finished their role are thrown down before the gate and burn out in great flames.

The Portable Shrines Descending the Steep Slope and the "Choppen" Rite　After the rite of cutting the sacred rope (shimenawa), two portable shrines enshrining Yuki Myojin and Hassho Myojin descend the steep stone steps of the approach. Armored warriors ride on the shrines, and women pull ropes attached at the rear to prevent them from falling. Pulling these ropes is said to bring the blessing of safe childbirth, and the large participation of women is another feature of the fire festival. At this moment two young men cling in an inverted spread-eagle position to the tip of the shrine's carrying poles, in the "Choppen" rite. This is one of the coming-of-age rites handed down in Kurama.

The Shrines Touring the Village and the Kagura Torch　The shrines that have descended the steep slope tour the village of Kurama. They once went directly from before the gate to the resting place, but a tour of the parish district was added upon the 1963 revival. The shrines tour as far as the direction of Kurama Onsen, where a specially shaped "kagura torch" resembling a tea whisk joins in, and they proceed south to enter the resting place. Around the time the kagura torch burns out, the shinko-sai (procession rite) concludes with the final ceremony.

Access and Practical Information

• Location: Kurama, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture (throughout the village of Kurama along the Kurama road)
• Venue: Yuki Shrine, the front of the Kurama-dera gate, the resting place (otabisho), and elsewhere
• Date: October 22 each year (the shinko-sai; the return rite is held the following day)
• Main Times: Around 6 p.m. the herald and lighting; around 8:30 p.m. gathering at the resting place; around 9 p.m. the climax before the gate; around 10 p.m. the shrine procession and the Choppen rite
• Access: Alight at "Kurama" Station on the Eizan Railway Kurama Line. Public transport is essential, as the day is extremely crowded and private cars are restricted from entering
• Viewing: Free, but as it takes place in a narrow mountain area, staking out a spot is basically impossible, and one must follow the guidance of guards and officials. Note the time of the last train

Nearby Attractions

Kurama is a mountain village to the north of central Kyoto, west of Mount Hiei, long known as a place of faith. Kurama-dera, the stage of the festival, is the head temple of Kurama-kokyo and is also famous as a land of tengu legend. Yuki Shrine sits midway along the steep approach leading from the Nio Gate to the main hall and serves as the starting point of the fire festival. Cedar groves line the approach, and one can savor an atmosphere filled with the spiritual air of mountain worship.

The village of Kurama has "Kurama Onsen," which is incorporated into the shrine procession route during the fire festival. A hot spring in the mountains, it serves as a base for the usually quiet Kurama sightseeing. Crossing the mountain from Kurama, one reaches Kibune, and the village of Kibune, known for Kifune Shrine and its riverside dining platforms, is also close by. Kurama and Kibune, as the inner retreat of Kyoto, draw many worshippers and tourists throughout the four seasons.

The Kurama Line of the Eizan Railway is known for the "maple tunnel" along its route and the sightseeing train "Kirara," and it is beloved as the means of access to Kurama and Kibune. The season of the autumn fire festival coincides with the season of autumn foliage, and the mountain village of Kurama enters its most brilliant season of the year. Together with the festival, an itinerary touring the nature and shrines and temples of Kurama and Kibune is easy to arrange.

Related Information

• Month: October (the 22nd)
• Location: Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Kinki region
• Origins: The torchlight procession at the transfer of Yuki Myojin in 940 (Tengyo 3) is the prototype; the present form of the fire festival developed from the late Edo period onward
• Scale: Some 300 torches large and small (including kaisho torches weighing more than 100 kilograms) and seven ceremonial halberds are carried in procession
• Main Rites: The herald (shinji-bure), the rite of cutting the sacred rope, the shrine procession, and the coming-of-age "Choppen" rite
• Status: One of the three great eccentric festivals of Kyoto; the annual rite of Yuki Shrine. Suspended in 1959 (Showa 34), revived in 1963 (Showa 38)
• Organizer / Preservation Body: Yuki Shrine / the parishioners of the village of Kurama (the seven groups, and others)

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