Japan has a large number of festivals throughout the year, and the Kansai area where I live is especially famous for local festivals. I've only managed to scan a few festival pictures so far, but I will update this page as soon as possible.
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Better known as the "Crying Baby Sumo Festival," this festival took place at Yamajjoji Shrine near Shimotsu town, about 30 minutes by train from Wakayama City. Here, young girls perform a traditional Japanese dance before the tournament. |
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The festival involved babies and young children dressed in a red mawashi (loincloth) "fighting" in a sumo ring. Here,the participants are performing the pre-game rituals of a typical sumo tournament. |
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In a traditional sumo match, the wrestler tries to push his opponent out of the ring. But, during the "Crying Baby" version, we naturally thought that the baby who cried first was the loser. In actuality, the baby who cried first was not the loser. Volunteers simply held the babies and rolled them back and forth on the ground as it is thought to bring good luck when the baby's back touches the ground during the tournament. Regardless, it was by far the cutest event I've seen in Japan. |
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Of course, there were a trillion photographers, and both babies were held high in the air for all the cameras, and awarded a prize. |
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