- Contestants fight to touch a naked man called a shin-otoko, or “godman.”
- Women remain fully clothed and do not participate in most of the event
Women will be allowed to take part in Japan’s ‘naked man’ festival next month for the first time in Japan’s 1,250-year history.
A group of 40 local women in Inazawa, Aichi Prefecture, will join the annual Hadaka Matsuri at Konomiya Shrine after petitioning organizers.
In this event, thousands of men strip down to their loincloths and clash in a huge struggle as they fight to touch a completely naked man called the shin-otoko or “godman” in the hope that it will bring them luck bring for the future. New Year.
Women will take part in the festival’s naoizasa ritual, in which participants carry bamboo grass wrapped in cloth to the shrine grounds.
But they will remain fully clothed and will not participate in the crushing of nearly naked bodies that the historic event is famous for.
During the event, thousands of men strip down to their loincloths and clash in a huge battle as they fight to touch a completely naked man called the shin-otoko or “godman.”
In a 2016 photo, men clean their bodies in a fountain before entering Saidaiji Temple
The men also fight over sacred wooden sticks called shingi, which are thrown into the crowd by a priest
Activists have hailed the move as a welcome step forward for gender equality, albeit one that is “long overdue.”
Mitsugu Katayama, an official of the festival’s organizing committee, said South China Morning Mail: ‘Due to the pandemic, we have not been able to hold the festival for the past three years as we used to and during that time we received many requests from women in the city to participate.’
He added that while there had been no active ban on women’s participation in the past, they had chosen not to take part in the festivities.
The festival is a celebration of harvest, prosperity and fertility and is usually held in February.
Officials say about 10,000 people are expected to participate in this year’s event, which kicks off on Feb. 22 around 3 p.m.
Men participating in the main event wear minimal clothing and wear nothing but bandanas, a white Japanese loincloth called a fundoshi, and a pair of white socks called tabi.
They parade through the city, throwing buckets of ice-cold water over each other and drinking sake – Japanese rice wine – to keep warm.
Participants compete to find a sacred stick thrown by temple priests during the Naked Festival, or Hadaka Matsuri at Saidaiji Temple on February 16, 2019
Revelers cheer as they gather in the temple building while catching a sacred wooden stick at the Naked Festival
Men pose as they prepare to take part in the ancient festival. The men wear only bandanas, loincloths and socks
Participants arrive to take part in the Naked Festival, or Hadaka Matsuri at Saidaiji Temple on February 16, 2019
Meanwhile, the ‘godman’ is shaved from head to toe and stripped of his clothes before being released to the crowd.
The men carry ribbon-covered portable shrines on bamboo poles as they proceed to the main shrine.
There they call for the shin-otoko to appear, before rushing to touch it to ignore their ‘bad luck’, while trying to get good luck for the coming year.
After the violent battle, the shin-otoko is retreated to the safety of the shrine.
The men also fight over sacred wooden sticks called shingi, according to the Independent, which are thrown into the crowd by a priest.
The 20 cm long sticks are scattered among bundles of twigs and are intended to bring good luck for a year to anyone who can catch them.