Kurama no Hi Matsuri 鞍馬の火祭り

PLEASE NOTE: the 2018 edition has been canceled due to work following the typhoon that hit the region this summer.

“Hi” means “fire” in Japanese but you can see it on your own by heading to Kurama's matsuri on October 22nd. It is certainly the most impressive of the festivals around Kyoto. The festivities begin at 6 pm: pyres, or kagaribi, are lit in front of the houses of the village, the occupants of which exhibit family treasures for the occasion. Then, children and adults walk in a traditional dress on the main street of the village with on their backs pine torches, the taimatsu, made by themselves. The size and weight of the torches are proportional to the age of the wearer. The largest weighs over 80 kg and are up to 5 meters long! At the end of the festivities, a portable shrine, or mikoshi, which houses several deities is brought to the heart of the village.

At the origins of the festival

The former capital Heian, present-day Kyoto, in the grip of clan wars, suffered a violent earthquake in 940. To protect the capital from further disasters, the emperor decided to transfer the shrine of the deity Yuki Myojin, protector of the imperial court, to Kurama, further north. The north was then considered the gateway to demons and other evil spirits. Fires would have been lit on the road by the inhabitants, to illuminate the passage of the divinity and to accompany the imperial procession.

A festive day

On October 22, another matsuri gathers, the Jidai matsuri (historical festival) which takes place during the day. If you want to attend both, after getting to the festival, take the Heiden Line small train around 5:00 p.m., which leads to Kurama village, about thirty minutes from Demachiyanagi Station. Remember to take warm clothes, as Kurama is located in the mountains north of Kyoto where the climate is colder and damp. When returning to Kyoto, be patient as the small Kurama station is taken by storm once the festivities are over.