The word "festival"("matsuri" in Japanese) usually remind us stalls in thestreet, portable shrines("mikoshi" in Japanese) and so on. Would you like to know what the word "festival" means originally?

The archaic Japanese word "matsurafu"written in Manyoshu,
the oldest anthology in Japan,is equivalent for the word "festival". The word "matsurafu" means inviting our deities,making offerings for them
and praying them for keeping evels and diseases away from us and bringing us happiness.
One Japanese festival usually has three stages.
They are the grand festival,the ceremony of the festival and the "shinkosai" festival
in which our deities parade riding on the portable shrines,"mikoshi".
We Japanese call all of them in one word "matsuri".
One of the essential articles for the Japanese festival is the portable shrine,"mikoshi".
Originally "mikoshi" is the vehicle for our deities to parade.
And,each of the deities has own "mikoshi",for example in the "Sanja"(means three shrines) Festival
three "mikoshis" are used for the first shrine,the second shrine and the third shrine.
By the way,these three "mikoshis" survived through many fires,for example,
the fire in the Great Kanto Earthquake,but at last they were burned in the fire of the war damage.
Fortunately the plans of the three "mikoshis" escaped the war damage
and the "mikoshis" were restored after the war and are still now used.
Those "mikoshis" are now usually kept in the temporary house made
by the steeplejacks by using logs and bamboos in the traditional way.
This traditional way of building was taught from generation to generation
and still now the steeplejacks are taught about it from more experienced men naturally.
The festivals consist of three factors,which are the sponsors,the participants and the viewers.
And,of course,when these three factors work as one,the festival becomes the wonderful event.
In Asakusa very popular streets like the Metro Street and the Orange Street play the good supporting roles
to make up the festivals as the wonderful events.
And,many large paper lanterns hung on poles ("takaharichochin" in Japanese) decorated around the Sensoji Temple
play the same role.
Many people feel the beautiful scene of the lanterns lighted at night like a dream.
The Sanja Festival in Asakusa is such a delightful event and is crowded with about 3 million "galleries" every year.
Applause and cheering from both the local people in Asakusa
and many "galleries" from other areas arouse the excitement in the Sanja Festival every time.
We think the excitement in the Sanja Festival has great importance when we compare
with many other areas in Tokyo where people are reluctant to live and their catch phrase "My hometown Tokyo" sounds ironically.

１・２・３・４・５・６−2007 Events in Asakusa−７・８・９・10・11・12

[January ("Mutsuki" in old Japanese)]
<1st>	Paying The First Visit To The Shrine Of The Year
<7th>	The Festival For The Japanese Radish Matsuchiyamashoten People make offerings various kinds of food to Matsuchiyamashoten,the guardian deity for Buddha. People pray for the safety of their families and for prosperity of their business in this Buddist service. After that the attendants boil Japanese radishes and eat them putting vinegared miso on them.
<8th>	Tondo Yaki This ceremony is held in the Torigoe Shrine.People burn many remains of the New Year's goods. It is traditionally said that we can spend the year in good health by exposing ourselves to this fire.

[February(Kisaragi)]	Details
<3rd>	Coming Spring(Setsubune) The shout of "Out with the devil!In with good fortune!"("Fuku wa uchi!Oni wa soto!" in Japanese)prevailed as the custom in the Muromachi era.
<3rd>	The Dance For Happiness And Long Life Held in the Sensoji Temple. This dance was shown for the first time in the 39th year of Showa when the Hozomon Gate was completed. Some people say this dance was adopted for praising happiness and prosperity of Kannon refering to the historical event of the Seven Deities of Good Luck.
<8th>	The Memorial Service For Needles People hold a memorial service for needles by sticking needles on "tofu" on a small wooden stand("sanpo" in Japanese) in the Awashimado Hall in the Sensoji Temple. Some people say this ceremony was introduced from China.
<25th>	The Hina Dolls Fair Hina dolls are sold.It was started in the Edo era and lost popularity at one time. In recent years it has got back prosperity.

[March(Yayoi)]	Details
<18th>	Do-age, Do-sage; Visiting and exiting of portable shrines Jigen-e is held in early spring in middle of March. The highlight of this festival is do-age and do-sage, the visiting and exiting ceremony of portable shrines of Asakusa Shrine. Three deities, Ichinomiya (Hajinoma Nakachi), Ninomiya (Hinokuma Hamanari), and Sannomiya (Hinokuma Takenari), who found the Kannon statue in the sea, pay visit to Kannon once a year, in Asakusa Temple where they had enshrined to worship the God of Mercy. In present days, ceremony　is carried out following the traditional rites on Saturday and Sunday closest to March 18th, and it will be on the 13th and 14th in 2004. In the late afternoon on the 13th, the three portable shrines with principal idols on each "visit" main building of Asakusa Temple, bore by worshippers. You will witness a spectacular scenery of each portable shrine, weighing more than 1 ton, solemnly carried up the stairs of the main building in the light of torches. The principal idols are pantheonized over night after reading of the sutras by priests of Asakusa Temple. The next afternoon, the portable shrines "exit" the building, bore by the worshippers and return to Asakusa Shrine in the late afternoon. It is an impressive and gracious ceremony ushering Sanja Annual Festival.
<18th>	The Anniversary Meeting Of The Appearance Of Asakusa Kannon,The Dance Of Gold Dragon This event is connected with the tradition that the gold figure of Sei Kannon was pulled up from the Miyato River(the present Sumida River) on March 18 in 628.
the middle of March -the middle of April	The Cherry Blossom Festival Around Asakusa is a noted place for cherry blossom.
<31th-the first of April>	The Sakura Bridge Flower Festival

[April(Uzuki)]
<8th>	The Buddha's Birthday Festival,The Flower Festival We celebrate the birthday of Buddha as "Busshoe" and the Flower Festival.
the middle of April	Tosenkyo
the middle of April	The Dance Of White Heron("shirasagi" in Japanese) The Sightseeing Festival Of Asakusa In Spring
<21th>	Yabusame(shooting an arrow at a target riding on a horse) This event was held in the Edo era in the Sensoji Temple and was reopened in the 58th year of Showa and now held in the Sumida Park.
<29-30th>	Kon Kon shoes festival
the last of April	Sumo Wrestling Of Crying The babies compete for their cries on the sumo ring. The baby who cries more loudly can win. This event started with the hope that babies become strong and healthy.

[May(Satsuki)]
<5th>	The Dance Of Treasure This event started in the 47th year of Showa connected with the Seven Deities of Good Luck. The children of the kindergarten draw a treasure ship,surround it and dance in front of the main hall of the temple.
<18-20th>	The Sanja Festival This festival is one of "the Big Three Festivals of Edo". Special edition(Only Japanese)
<25th>	Memorial Service for Fire Fighters in Tokyo (Yayoi-sai) Starting at 10:00 Memorial Service for the 120 firefighters who were killed on their duties during late Edo era to early Showa era. The service is well known for the performances on high ladders by steeple jacks.
<26-27th>	The Beginning of the Mountaineering Season of Mt.Fuji and The Plants Fair This ceremony is held connected with the festival held in the Fuji Sengen Shrine at the foot of Mt.Fuji. People call this ceremony "O Fuji San".

[June(Minatsuki)]
<8-10th>	The Meeting of Praying for Providence by Offering Willow Branches in Clean Water This event has been held since the 8th year of Taisho. It is said that the believers who step forward to the altar with willow branches in clean water of the vase and with sprigs can recover from their illness soon.
<30th-the first of July>	The Beginning of the Mountaineering Season of Mt.Fuji and The Plants Fair This ceremony is held connected with the festival held in the Fuji Sengen Shrine at the foot of Mt.Fuji. People call this ceremony "O Fuji San".

[July(Fuzuki)]
<6-8th>	The Festival Of Morning Glories Held in Iriya.
the first of July	Downtown Tanabata Festival At Kappa-bashi Shopping Mall
<9-10th>	The Forty-Six Thousand Days,The Chinese Lantern Plants Fair It is said that the people who visit Kannon on these days can get divine protection equal to the people who visit for forty-six thousand days,in other words,for one hundred twenty-seven years every day without only one day absence.
<28th>	The Fireworks Display Around The Sumida River This event was suspended for a time and was reopened in the 55rd year of Showa.

[August(Hazuki)]
the first of August	The Noh Play Lighted Up By Wood On The Fire In Taito This event has been held since the 55th year of Showa.
<25th>	The Asakusa Carnival This is the Riodejaneiro Carnival in Japanese style.

[September(Nagatsuki)]
<20th>	Shoten Festival
<25th>	The Memorial Service For dolls

[October(Kannazuki)]
<18th>	The Memorial Service For Chrysanthemums,The Dance Of Gold Dragon People offer chrysanthemums at the altar and exchange for the chrysanthemums performed incantation and prayers.The tradition says the people who put these chrysanthemums into their pillows can live long.

[November(Shimotsuki)]
<3rd>	The Dance Of White Heron This event was started to commemorate the centennial of the Meiji restoration in the 43rd year of Showa. The dancing eight dancers in the costume made in the shape of white heron walk around.
<3rd>	The Festival Of The History Of Tokyo This is the new festival started in the first year of Heisei. The costume parade playing the historical picturescroll reproduce the history from the beginning to today of Tokyo.
<11th･23th> the days of Tori(the day comes every twelve days in the calendar of China) chicken's day	Once this event was the festival named "the Chicken Festival" for celebrating the good harvest in fall and for offering chickens as a token of their thanks for their deities. The word "Tori" also means a chicken. In the Edo era the meaning of the word "Tori" changed to the meaning of the China calendar and the fairs were opened.
<23rd>	The Ichiyo Festival A great woman writer Ichiyo Higuchi's memorial hall,Ichiyo's Memorial Hall,is opened free to the public and the lecture about literature in the Meiji era and so on are held.
<24-25th>	Shoes Festival

[December(Shiwasu)]
<15-16th>	Hakidaore Market 10:00〜17:00 Shoe manufacturers of Tamahime Inari Shrine hold a charity event as "Shoes Festival".
<17-19th>	The Hagoita Fair
<31th>	The Tolling Of The Bells On New Year's Eve