Ubagami Daijingū Togyosai

Overview

The Ubagami Daijingu Togyosai is the grand annual festival of Ubagami Daijingu Shrine, enshrined in Esashi Town, Hiyama District, Hokkaido, and is a summer festival representative of Hokkaido, held over three days from August 9 to 11 each year. Boasting a history of more than 370 years, it is known as the oldest festival in Ezo, that is, Hokkaido. Counted as one of the three great festivals of Esashi Town, it is a gorgeous festival that conveys to this day the history and pride of Esashi, a port town that once flourished through herring fishing.

The stars of the festival are the thirteen floats, called yama, handed down in the town, and the three mikoshi portable shrines. The thirteen floats attend the procession of the mikoshi as they parade through the town, traveling in prayer for a rich harvest, a good catch, and freedom from illness. The sight of the gorgeous floats, coated in vermilion and black lacquer, wrapping the summer of the northern port town in heat is breathtaking. As a designated intangible folk cultural property of Hokkaido, it has been carefully handed down by the hands of local people.

History and Origins

The origins of the Ubagami Daijingu Togyosai are said to trace back to around 1644, giving it a long history of more than 370 years. It is regarded as the oldest festival in Ezo, Hokkaido, and in a Hokkaido whose history of settlement is relatively recent, the antiquity of this festival, handed down continuously since the early Edo period, stands out. It is a precious cultural heritage that tells how early the port town of Esashi flourished through trade with the main island of Honshu.

This festival is deeply connected with the herring fishing that supported the prosperity of Esashi. In former times, Esashi thrived greatly through herring fishing, so lively that it was said the May of Esashi was not even to be found in Edo. It is said that the origin of the festival lies in gratitude for the good catch, offered in summer when the herring fishing had ended. Gratitude for the bounty of the sea, and the prayers of people for a good catch and rich harvest in the coming year, have nurtured this grand festival.

Ubagami Daijingu Shrine, which lends its name to the festival, has drawn faith from ancient times as the guardian shrine of the region. The origin of the shrine's name, Ubagami, is connected to a historical event related to the land, and it is also the origin of the name of this district, Ubagami-cho. The form of the festival, in which the floats of the town attend the procession of the mikoshi, has developed into its present shape over many long years while bound to such local faith.

This oldest festival of Hokkaido, for the high value of its history and culture, is a designated intangible folk cultural property of Hokkaido. The festival implements, including the gorgeous floats, and the tradition of the attending procession, have been preserved and handed down through the generations by the townspeople of Esashi. As a festival that conveys to this day the prosperity of the herring boom of old and the memory of a port town that has lived alongside the sea, it continues to be a source of pride for the people of Esashi.

Highlights

The Procession of Thirteen Gorgeous Floats The symbol of the Ubagami Daijingu Togyosai is the procession of the thirteen floats, called yama, handed down in the town. Each has a base gorgeously coated in vermilion and black lacquer, conveying the prosperity of Esashi to this day. Twelve are floats with two or three tiers of seating set upon a cart in the style of a court carriage, and their forms adorned with resplendent decoration color the summer of the port town.

The Boat-Shaped Float Matsuhomaru Among the thirteen floats, the fact that one alone, the Matsuhomaru, takes the form of a boat is a major highlight. A float modeled on a ship, unique to Esashi as a port town that has lived alongside the sea, gives off a distinctive presence different from the other floats. Symbolizing the history of Esashi, which flourished through herring fishing, this float stands out conspicuously even within the festival.

The Procession of Three Mikoshi At the center of the festival is the procession of three mikoshi issuing forth from Ubagami Daijingu Shrine. The thirteen floats attend these mikoshi as they parade through the town, praying for a good catch, a rich harvest, and freedom from illness. The grand procession, in which the floats follow one after another around the mikoshi, dyes the town of Esashi entirely in the colors of the festival over three days.

The Yadoire no Gi The climax of the festival is the yadoire no gi, in which the mikoshi that have made their rounds of the town rush all at once up the stairway leading to the worship hall of Ubagami Daijingu Shrine. The valiant scene in which the bearers combine their strength and carry the mikoshi up the steps to shouts is the moment when the heat of the festival reaches its peak. Wrapped in tension and cheers, this rite is the great spectacle that brings the togyosai to a close.

The Beauty of Vermilion and Black Lacquer The vermilion and black lacquer applied to the bases of the floats heightens the beauty of this festival. That such splendid lacquered floats have been handed down in a northern port town is precisely because of the wealth brought by herring fishing. The gorgeous gleam of the lacquer may be called a living testimony conveying the prosperity of Esashi in former days.

The Summer Heat of a Northern Port Town For three days in August, the whole town of Esashi is wrapped in the air of the festival. The shouts and music of the people pulling the floats echo out, and the sight of the town filled with heat is a power befitting the oldest festival of Hokkaido. In a cool northern land, Esashi in this season is at its most heated and lively of the whole year, and the unity and pride of the region become one.

Access and Information

• Location: Esashi Town, Hiyama District, Hokkaido
• Venue: The center of Esashi Town (Ubagami Daijingu Shrine and others)
• Dates: August 9 to 11 each year (eve festival on the 9th, mikoshi procession on the 10th and 11th)
• Floats: Thirteen (one of which is the boat-shaped Matsuhomaru); three mikoshi
• Access: By car or bus to central Esashi Town from the direction of Hakodate
• Organizer and inquiries: Ubagami Daijingu Togyosai Support Executive Committee and Esashi Town

Around the Area

In Esashi Town there is the Esashi Yama Kaikan, a hall where the gorgeous floats of this festival can be viewed throughout the year, so that one can touch the atmosphere of the togyosai even outside the festival period. Through displays of the actual floats and footage of the festival, it is a facility where one can come to know up close the history and power of the oldest festival of Hokkaido.

Esashi is a historic port town that once flourished through herring fishing, and within the town remain old townscapes and historic buildings that convey its prosperity. Along the street called the Inishie Kaido, former merchant houses and the like stand side by side, and one can reflect upon the vestiges of the prosperity that from the Edo period to the Meiji period was celebrated in the saying that the May of Esashi was not even to be found in Edo.

Esashi Town faces the Sea of Japan in the southwest of Hokkaido, and around it spread rich nature and the bounty of the sea. Scenic spots such as Kamome Island and the food culture unique to a port town, where one can taste fresh seafood, are also attractions. Visiting Esashi in the season of the togyosai, one can fully savor the heat of the oldest festival of Hokkaido, together with the history and atmosphere of a port town that flourished through herring fishing.

Related Information

• Month: August (summer)
• Prefecture and region: Esashi Town, Hiyama District, Hokkaido
• Shrine: Ubagami Daijingu Shrine (guardian shrine of Esashi)
• Origins: The oldest festival in Ezo, Hokkaido, said to have continued since around 1644; derived from gratitude for a good herring catch
• Cultural property designation: A designated intangible folk cultural property of Hokkaido

← Explore More Festivals