＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:https://skawa68.com/
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
<Addition on 7/15/2022> In 2022, Yamaboko Junko and Yoiyama will be held in their original form for the first time in three years.
When I hear the pleasant Gion music of “Konchikichin, Konchikichin, Konchikichin,” I feel that summer has arrived in Kyoto.
Akiko Yosano wrote the following waka poem about cherry blossom viewing at night, which somehow reminds me of this poem when I see the cheerful faces of people strolling in the Yoiyama area during the Gion Festival.
“Cherry blossom moonlight night passing through Gion to Kiyomizu, everyone I meet tonight is beautiful.”
「清水（きよみず）へ祇園をよぎる桜月夜 今宵会う人みな美しき」（与謝野晶子）
1．Trivia about the Gion Festival
（１） Gion Festival is a month-long event that lasts from July 1 to July 31.
July 1: Kippu-iru (the blessing of good fortune)（吉符入）
July 2: Kuji-tori ceremony（くじ取式）
July 10: Welcoming lanterns, washing of portable shrines, Saki-no-matsuri (the first festival): Hoko-erection and Yama-erection（お迎え提灯、神輿洗、前祭 鉾建て・山建て）
July 13: Children who are scheduled to ride on the Naginata hoko floats pay a visit to Yasaka Shrine to receive a rank equivalent to that of a 150,000-goku daimyo (feudal lord).（長刀鉾稚児社参）
July 14-16: Mae-Matsuri Yoiyama（前祭宵山）
July 17: Saki-no-matsuri Yamahoko-junko, Shinko-sai（前祭山鉾巡行、神幸祭）
July 18-21: Yamahoko-Tate (float erection) at the Ato-no-maturi Festival（後祭 山鉾建て）
July 21-23: Yoiyama, Ato-no-matsuri (the second festival)（後祭宵山）
July 24: Yamahoko-Junko, Hanagasa Junko, Kankosai（後祭山鉾巡行、花傘巡行、還幸祭）
July 28: Mikoshi washing（神輿洗）
July 31: Nagoshi Sai (summer festival) at Eki jinjya(Shrine)（疫神社夏越祭）
（２）Chimakis (zongzi), a good-luck charm, are not eaten
Zongzi for the Gion Festival is not food, but a “good luck charm to ward off bad luck.
Please be assured that each wagashi store sells zongzi that can be eaten.
（３） Ujiko of Yasaka Shrine and people related to the Gion Festival do not eat cucumbers during the Gion Festival.
This is because the cut end of the cucumber resembles the “Gion mokou（「祇園木瓜（ぎおんもっこう）」）,” the sacred crest of Yasaka Shrine, and it is considered “fearful” to eat it.
（４）Naginata Hoko（「長刀（なぎなた）鉾」）” is the unshakable leader of the Saki-no-matsuri (the first festival).
Known since ancient times as “Kujitorazu,” it always leads the procession of Yamahoko floats every year. Only the Naginata-boko floats are used by children who perform the “shimenawa (sacred rope) cutting” ceremony.
（５）Difference between “Yama” and “Hoko
Yama” can be divided into two types: ‘Hikiyama’ and ‘Kakiyama,’ while ‘Hoko’ can be divided into three types: ‘Hoko,’ ‘Kasa-Hoko,’ and ”Funaboko.
A “Yama（mountain）” is not a weapon, but a kind of elaborate “creation” or “spectacle” designed to attract the attention of onlookers and the gods. It is a “moving stage,” so to speak. Karakuri dolls and other puppets are used, and the “mountain” is equipped with evergreen pine trees and cedar trees.
The “Hoko” is said to have originated from “furyu-hyoshimono,” in which metal weapons, such as a sword float, are attached to the end of a 20-meter or longer Shingi(genuine tree) and paraded around it, dancing to the accompaniment of gongs, drums and other instruments. When watching the Yamahoko procession of Ayakasa-hoko floats, you can sometimes see “bou-furi odori” (dancing with a stick). That is why there is always “Gion-bayashi” on the floats.
（６）Unique Yama and Hoko floats
Unique floats and mounts with animal motifs include the Tourou-yama (praying mantis), the Koi-yama (carp float), and the Niwatori-boko (chicken float).
①Tourou-yama (praying mantis)
It is said that the festival began in 1376 when a medicine merchant living in the town, Chin Uiro Tainen Souki, likened the story of Shijo Takasuke, who had a mansion in the town during the Nanbokucho period (1336-1568), confronting Ashikaga Yoshiakira to the legend of the “mantis axe” and carried a praying mantis on his Shijo family’s palace car.
②Koi-yama (carp float)
The mountain is based on the Chinese legend of the ascending dragon gate. The upper section features a carving of a carp and a white linen cord depicting a carp climbing up a waterfall. The carving of the carp is said to have been made by the early Edo period master craftsman Hidari Jingoro. The hanging ornaments are cut from a tapestry made in Belgium in the 16th century. The tapestry depicts a scene from the Trojan War in the Greek epic poem “Iliad.
③Niwatori-boko (chicken float)
This design is said to have been inspired by the “Naganakidori,” a long-necked chicken of the everlasting world, in the story of Amano-Iwato in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters), or by the “Kanko,” a story of the Gyō (堯) period in ancient China.
（７）Gorgeous ornaments
The costumes of the floats are so gorgeous that they are called “moving museums. A closer look reveals not only Nishijin brocade, but also a Gobelin tapestry made in Flanders, Belgium, about 400 years ago, which shows the internationality of the Kyoto people.
２．What is Gion Festival?
The Gion Festival is a festival of Yasaka Shrine (Gion Shrine) in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto. Before the Meiji Restoration, it was called “Gion Goryoe（「祇園御霊会（ごりょうえ）」）,” but the name was changed to the current name due to the Shinto/Buddhist Separation Order of the Meiji Restoration.
Due to a continuing epidemic, the Imperial Court held the first Goryoe in Shinsen-en in 863. The Goryoe was held to appease and quiet the spirits of the plague gods and the grudge spirits of the dead, etc. At that time, it was believed that the plague was also caused by the hauntings of the grudge spirits of those who died leaving their grudges in this world.
Fuji erupted in 864, and in 869 the Mutsu Jogan Earthquake occurred, resulting in a tsunami that killed many people and aggravated social unrest.
In 869, 66 halberds were erected to represent the number of countries in Japan, and the evil spirits of the nations were transferred to the halberds and made to dwell in them to purify the nations of the world. This is believed to be the origin of the Gion Festival.
The festival was interrupted during the Onin War (1467-1477) in the Muromachi period (1336-1573), the Yamahoko floats were damaged by the “Three Great Fires of Kyoto” in the Edo period (1603-1868), and World War II interrupted the festival, but the tradition has been carried on uninterrupted to this day.
３．How to enjoy the Gion Festival
（１）Goryoe red seals” available only during the Gion Festival
During the Gion Festival (July 1 to July 31), Yasaka Shrine offers “Goryoe red seals” (500 yen), which are limited to the Gion Festival.
（２）Yoiyama and Yoiyoiyama are more fun than Yamahoko Junko(procession)
Tsujimawashi,” the change of direction of the Yamahoko procession, is one of the highlights and real pleasures of the Gion Festival, but I think the Yoiyama and Yoiyoiyama are more enjoyable to watch at night as you stroll through the floats lit by the lanterns.
（３）It is fun to see the folding screens displayed in the houses.
As the Gion Festival is also known as the “Byobu-matsuri(Folding Screen Festival)（「屏風祭」）,” houses in the Yamahoko-cho district display their treasured folding screens in their tatami rooms so that they can be viewed from outside. It is fun to walk around looking at these gorgeous folding screens.
（４）Delicious hamo (pike conger) dishes
The Gion Festival is also known as the Hamo Festival. For Kyotoites and people in the Kansai region, it is a great pleasure to eat hamo dishes during this time of the year. I love hamo because it has a light flavor and is not as fatty as eel. Hamo no Otoshi, Hamo no Sushi, Hamo no Tempura, and other hamo dishes are all delicious.