Ali Mozaffari, Hassaku Festival - Japan (DOCO 2026)

I literally didn’t know anything about this fascinating festival. Seeing a poster of women carrying a little shrine sparked my curiosity, I asked around about it and made it at 8 am sharp to the shrine it was happening on that first Sunday of September! The “Hassaku” in Hassakusai refers to the new moon in August. This festival was started over 130 years ago just around the time of August 1st on the old lunar calendar—when Kyoto sees an increase in strong winds—as a way to pray for damage-free crops and safety in the household. Only ladies dressed in white are allowed to carry a shrine to the main shrine as a symbol of thanksgiving for the harvest.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.