Okunitama-jinja Shrine Chestnut Festival (Autumn Festival) 大國魂神社―秋季祭・くり祭―

Note: The 2024 installment of this event has already taken place.

Okunitama-jinja Shrine's autumn festival is also known as the Chestnut Festival. A festival with historical value, it traces its beginnings to the year 1737, the same year that Musashi Rokushogu Shrine, where grand, sacred kagura dances were performed, was founded.

This festival became known as the Chestnut Festival during the Edo period (1603-1867). High-quality chestnuts, which were a valuable type of preserved food, were cultivated in the Musashino region, and often presented as gifts to the Tokugawa clan that ruled Edo (as Tokyo was once known). The chestnut season happened to overlap with the kagura dance season, giving the festival its current name.

The festival is well-known for the 260 paper lanterns that light the grounds. Introduced in 1925, these lanterns are religious offerings that people draw pictures on.

Enjoy an autumn evening while listening to kagura melodies.