Ōka-sai｜桜花祭

Established in 794 when the capital was moved to Kyoto, Hirano Shrine has long enjoyed a prosperous relationship with Japan’s imperial family, as well as famous political powers such as the Genji and the Heike.  Most famous for its gardens full of cherry blossom trees, Hirano Shrine contains 400 trees made up of 50 different species of sakura.

A sakura festival has occurred at the shrine every single year since 985, for over a thousand years.  This makes it the oldest festival in Kyoto that can claim to have continued unbroken for that long.

To begin the festival, a ceremony is held at 10:00 in front of the shrine and then at 11:00 at the mausoleum of Emperor Kazan, who reigned when the festival was first established. The procession is made up of an omikoshi (portable shrine), lovely women in varying historical kimono styles, priests, and mounted warriors on horseback.  They leave the shrine precincts at 13:00 and make their way around the neighborhood area before returning to the shrine.