Combining spiritual practices to benefit all beings with history, magic, myths, and legend, it’s challenging to be cooler than a committed yamabushi. Did you know that the Gion Matsuri and
The spectacular Ato Matsuri floats procession, an iconic part of the Gion Festival. Dating to 869 C.E., Kyoto’s Gion Matsuri shines as a beacon of more than a thousand years
Gion Festival fans around the world are wondering: will there be a Gion Matsuri 2022? What kind of shape will it take? We won’t know until the Gion Matsuri Yamaboko
The Yasaka Jinja is usually buzzing with visitors during the Gion Festival, but not in 2021. Image courtesy Jorie Johnson. No doubt the Gion Festival community and Kyoto authorities felt
Though the Gion Festival floats processions have been canceled in 2021 for the second year in a row due to covid, Gion Festival Yamaboko Floats Association officials and Yasaka Shrine
Gion Matsuri 2021: festival-goers pay respects at the festival’s parent Yasaka Shrine. Are they praying for an end to covid, the Gion Festival’s original purpose? Image courtesy Jorie Johnson.
KYOTO––The 2021 Gion Festival will again be held on a much smaller scale than usual, same as 2020. Once more this is due to the covid virus and concerns about
Will there be a Gion Festival 2021? Gion Festival 2020 did take place, but because of coronavirus concerns it was held in a much smaller way than usual.
I’m excited to be in the final stretch of writing my guidebook to the Gion Festival in English. My plan was to launch it at the Gion Festival 2020, in
A major portion of the Gion Festival 2020 is canceled. On April 20 the Gion Festival Floats Association and Yasaka Shrine together announced that the Gion Festival processions on July
Like every year, there’s lots happening during the spectacular and enormous Gion Festival 2020. Alas, most events are little advertised, or marketed only in Japanese.
Shining as the best-known festival in Japan, the Gion Festival takes place every year over the whole month of July. It’s a testimony to the community spirit of downtown Kyotoites
