The Sanja Matsuri in Six Key Words

Ujiko: Keeping Local Traditions Alive

The ujiko are the local parishioners in each of the 44 neighborhoods that make up the Asakusa area. It is the ujiko who are responsible for the most important part of the festival: carrying the mikoshi, or sacred palanquins. Nakajima Kōta, third-generation owner of the local restaurant Asakusa Mugitoro, was in charge of festivities this year for one of the neighborhoods close to Kaminarimon, at the very heart of old Asakusa.

“I was a young man of around 20 when I helped carry one of the three main shrine mikoshi for the first time. It was a wonderful experience. I was amazed to see hundreds of people cooperating and moving together in response to the shouted instructions.

Nakajima at work as the San no Miya “mikoshi” is paraded through the streets.

“A matsuri is essentially a religious festival. So it’s important to preserve the traditions. But it’s also important to give as many people as possible an opportunity to experience the fun and excitement of the festival for themselves. Soaking up the atmosphere is an important part of what it’s all about. That’s a big part of our job: helping locals and visitors alike get the most out of the matsuri experience."

Asakusa Mugitoro (Address: Kaminarimon 2-2-4, Taitō-ku, Tokyo; Tel. +81 3-3842-1066; open daily; English menu available.)

Shrine-bearers wait for the San no Miya to arrive in the Kaminarimon Higashi district.

Nakajima on top of the San no Miya.

The “mikoshi” sets off just after six in the evening.

The Tokyo Skytree lit up against the evening sky.

The San no Miya arrives at the Kaminarimon Gate.

Katsugite: The Bearers of Tradition

Shifting population patterns in recent years mean that many neighborhoods can no longer recruit sufficient numbers of ujiko to carry the heavy mikoshi at the festival each year. The neighborhood communities are helped out by teams of volunteer shrine bearers from near and far, people drawn by the opportunity to experience the excitement of the festival up close and to help keep the traditions alive at the same time.

Matsumoto Kōichi, director of the Asakusa Omatsuri Museum, is a good example. He has helped carry mikoshi at festivals all over the country. But for Matsumoto, the Sanja Matsuri has a special significance. “I grew up with the sound of festival music in my ears. It was like a nursery rhyme to me.” Matsumoto says his understanding of the festival has changed since he moved to Asakusa 12 years ago, and he became an ujiko himself.

Matsumoto’s enthusiasm for the festival is infectious.

“I realize now how important the festival is to the people who live here, many of them from families that have been settled here for generations. Of course the out-of-town shrine bearers really get into it, too—so I don’t want to draw too sharp a contrast. Both groups are necessary to ensure that the festival goes smoothly.

“The Sanja Matsuri in Asakusa has a reputation to live up to—everyone wants to see teams of strong, big-hearted people carrying the mikoshi. At the museum we want to make sure that the festival continues to bring enjoyment and excitement to the people who watch and take part, far into the future.”

A variety of festival-related merchandise is on sale in the museum shop.

Asakusa Omatsuri Museum (Address: Kaminarimon 2-3-5, Taitō-ku, Tokyo; Tel. +81 3-6796-7800; open daily.) http://omatsurimuseum.net/english

Cutting the white fabric for special festival hand cloths.

Mikoshi: Vehicles of the Gods

The Sanja Matsuri is famous for its mikoshi—more than a hundred are involved in the celebrations over the course of the weekend, in addition to the three colossal mikoshi belonging to Asakusa Shrine.

Mikoshi are sacred vehicles that carry the divine spirits of the deities. Often very impressively decorated, they feature imposing designs that incorporate elements of Shintō shrine architecture.

Vibrant colors are another characteristic of the Sanja Matsuri mikoshi. The current design of the Asakusa Shrine was influenced by the Tōshōgū Shrine in Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, where the shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu is entombed. (The present main structure of Asakusa Shrine was built when Ieyasu’s grandson was shōgun.) Although the original mikoshi were destroyed during World War II, replacements were built by Miyamoto Unosuke Co., Ltd. shortly after the war: Ichi no Miya and Ni no Miya were completed in 1950, and San no Miya was ready for the festival in 1953.

Postwar versions of the Ichi no Miya and Ni no Miya “mikoshi” were ready in time for the festival in 1950, after the originals were destroyed during World War II. (Photo courtesy of Miyamoto Unosuke Co., Ltd.)

“The replacements were made during my grandfather’s time,” explains the seventh-generation Miyamoto Unosuke. “Not only were the mikoshi lost to fire—there were no adequate photographs either. Apparently they had to go to Nikkō and carry out research there to find out how to build the new mikoshi correctly.”

Some 20 separate processes are involved in making a single mikoshi: carving and assembling the wood, painting it with lacquer, casting and mounting the gold and other decorations, and layering the gold leaf on the inside of the mikoshi roof, for example. A specialist craftsman takes charge of each stage.

The mikoshi need to be not just graceful but sturdy because they are subjected to heavy vibrations and shaking during the festival. The masugumi bracket plays an important cushioning role by distributing the weight of the roof throughout the structure; it is assembled by a traditional method without using a single nail.

“We take this work very seriously,” Miyamoto explains. “The mikoshi we make are used in religious ceremonies, and for the ujiko they are an expression of the fierce pride they feel in their communities. We try to bring a certain purity of heart to our work. The festival is a time for people to come together across the generations, working together to make the festival a success. This leads to closer community ties. I would like to think that we are doing our part to strengthen the ties that bind the community together.”

The “mitsuami-mon” (three nets crest) symbolizes the three men whose spirits are revered as the divinities of Asakusa Shrine.

Not a single nail is used in the “masugumi” that supports the “mikoshi” roof.

A “mikoshi” from around 1955, dominated by the majestic figure of a phoenix, is displayed at the head office of the Miyamoto Unosuke Co., Ltd.

The ornamentation at the four corners of the “mikoshi” curves up from under the roof–one of the distinctive characteristics of the Sanja Matsuri “mikoshi”.

One of the supporting poles of the Komagata “mikoshi”, used by the shrine bearers during the procession, with the kanji characters for “Komagata” inscribed on the end.

The Miyamoto Unosuke delivers the “mikoshi” to Komagata ready for use in the festival.

Master carpenter Kikuchi works on binding the ropes to the supporting pole.

Work is finished and the “mikoshi” is now ready for the festival.

Miyamoto Unosuke Co., Ltd. Head Office (Address: 6-1-15 Asakusa, Taitō-ku, Tokyo; Tel. +81 3-3873-4155; closed Sat-Sun and Japanese national holidays) Nishi Asakusa Store (Address: 2-1-1 Nishi Asakusa, Taitō-ku, Tokyo; Tel. +81 3-3844-2141; open daily.） http://www.miyamoto-unosuke.co.jp/english/index.html

Miyagashira: The Shrine Head Who Keeps Things in Order

The miyagashira, or “shrine head,” plays the crucial role of overseeing the huge crowds of people who pass through the shrine during the festival.

“A miyagashira needs to keep a constant eye on everyone, making sure people are all right and that everything is running smoothly. It’s a job that requires a sense of duty and gratitude, and a willingness to work hard,” explains Sugibayashi Jin’ichi, seventh-generation bearer of the illustrious Shinmon Tatugorō name, which has connections to the festival dating back to the days of the Tokugawa shogunate (1603 –1867). “If someone asks you a favor, you can’t very well say no. And you have to be open enough to take on board comments from people all around you. Those are the skills you need to be a good miyagashira.”

The first Shinmon Tatsugorō was a construction worker and fireman. This prominent figure has appeared regularly in historical dramas depicting life in the capital during the nineteenth century. Sugibayashi is the seventh to bear the name.

At the Sanja Matsuri, most of the miyagashira’s work goes on behind the scenes. Numerous rehearsals are necessary to make sure that all the 44 neighborhood associations and their mikoshi arrive at Asakusa Shrine at the right time. During the festival itself, the miyagashira has to maintain constant contact with people throughout the area to make sure that the three main mikoshi complete their circuits on schedule.

“It’s important to make sure that every neighborhood gets the same opportunities with the mikoshi. It can lead to frictions and resentments if one neighborhood takes too long and cuts into everyone else’s time. It’s vital to ensure that the time is shared equally among all the 44 groups.”

In 2008, the main event of the festival was cancelled after a number of accidents and controversies involving unruly elements of the crowd climbing onto the mikoshi. “That cancellation really helped focus people’s minds. It’s our job to make sure that everyone obeys the rules that are in place to ensure everyone’s safety. Cooperation is necessary for everyone to have their moment. Festival weekend is a time when the usual order of things is suspended, and people can get away with things that would be unthinkable at normal times. But that only makes it more important to make sure that reasonable standards are observed so that everything runs smoothly.”

The three-dimensional “matoi” fire standards used during the Edo period. Each firefighting group had its own distinctive “matoi,” which would be placed atop a burning building to indicate a fire had broken out.

Sugibayashi with his grandson, who will one day be the ninth-generation Shinmon Tastsugorō.

Hanten and Festival Stalls: Bringing Color and Vibrancy to the Festival

By noon on Saturday May 19, 2012, the ujiko from the 44 neighborhoods had gathered with their mikoshi in a lot behind the Buddhist temple Sensōji. The shrine bearers are proudly wearing the special hanten coats, each one emblazoned with a unique design showing the wearer’s neighborhood and organization affiliation. The colorful hanten turn the area into a blaze of color and are a photographer’s dream.

Another essential part of the fun at any Japanese festival are the stalls selling food and games. The Sanja Matsuri is no exception, with a mind-boggling variety of stalls crammed into the grounds of Sensōji. Some of the stalls are classics found at every matsuri in Japan—such as kingyo sukui, where children try to scoop goldfish from a small pool with a paper spoon, and stalls hawking common matsuri snacks like takoyaki (fried octopus) and cotton candy. Other stalls feature Sanja Matsuri specialties, like refreshing anzu ame (candied apricots), skewers of iced cucumber, and delicious salted ayu (sweet fish).

(Originally written in Japanese by Hirose Tatsuya. Photographs by Yamada Shinji, Kodera Kei, Hanai Tomoko.)

The three main “mikoshi” (Ichi no Miya, Ni no Miya, and San no Miya) leave Asakusa Shrine at the start of their tour of the 44 neighborhoods of Asakusa.

A mass of people looking for a chance to help carry one of the three main “mikoshi.” As many as 3,000 people crowd round each “mikoshi,” fighting to get as close to the action as possible.

Barricades are set up to ensure no one gets hurt in the chaos.

The “mikoshi” lurches violently as the team of bearers loses its balance for a moment.

The three “mikoshi” leave Asakusa Shrine.

In front of the main prayer hall at the Buddhist temple Sensōji.

Passing through the Nakamise.

Saitō is the head of the Uma San-Chōkai neighborhood association. “We don’t have many kids in our neighborhood most of the time, but when the festival comes round all the youngsters who’ve moved away after getting married come back with their families. Everyone makes a special effort to be here for the festival.”

A team of shrine bearers waits for the “mikoshi” to arrive at Asakusa Uma San-Chōkai, one of the 12 neighborhoods of the Eastern Division.

The Ichi no Miya arrives in Uma San-Chōkai at 12:10 on the afternoon of May 20.

The atmosphere reaches fever pitch as the bearers come together in a solid mass.

The head of the Uma San-Chōkai association leads the team of bearers in a round of ceremonial clapping.

An imposing tengu demon leads the way, representing the god Saruta Hiko no Mikoto, who welcomed the gods to earth in early myths.

Relaxed smiles after the neighborhood procession concludes without incident.

A “mikoshi” passing under the Kaminarimon Gate at the entrance to the temple Sensōji. After their tour of the 44 neighborhoods, the three main “mikoshi” are returned to Asakusa Shrine on Sunday evening.

A procession passes under the torii gate into the precincts of Asakusa Shrine, led by Shintō priests.

The San no Miya is returned to its storage place after its procession is completed.