Japan prosperity rite draws thousands in loincloths despite winter cold
Men dressed in loincloths react as a priest splashes water on them before they prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. The person who grabs the wooden stick is considered the "luckiest man of the year". REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
About 10,000 Japanese men clad only in loincloths braved freezing temperatures at the weekend to pack into a temple and scramble in the dark for lucky wooden talismans tossed into the crowd, in a ritual that dates back five centuries.
The highlight of the raucous day-long 'Hadaka Matsuri' festival came at 10 p.m. on Saturday, when the lights went out and a priest threw bundles of twigs and two lucky sticks, each about 20-cm (8-inch) -long, among the participants.
Men dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
That set off a 30-minute tussle for the sticks, coveted as symbols of good fortune and prosperity, although most men escaped with just a few cuts and bruises, in contrast to past occasions, when some have been crushed to death.
"Once a year, at the coldest time in February, we wrap ourselves in just a loincloth to be a man," said 55-year-old Yasuhiko Tokuyama, the president of a regional electronics firm.
"That's the significance of this event and why I continue to participate."
Men dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
Plenty of sake and beer is sold outside the temple to warm the revelers, but a purifying plunge into pools of cold water before the start of the festival was a shock to the system for most.
The annual celebration at the Saidaiji Kannonin Temple in the southern city of Okayama has its roots in a competition to grab paper talismans that dates back more than 500 years.
But as its popularity grew, the paper talismans began to rip, as did the clothes of the rising number of participants, so that eventually wooden sticks were adopted and garments discarded.
Men dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
(Reporting by Akira Tomoshige and Jack Tarrant; Writing by Jack Tarrant; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Men dressed in loincloths march as they prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths walk into a purification pool before they enter a temple building to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths fall as they try to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonA monk presides a ceremony during a naked festival where men dressed in loincloths snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonA woman splashes water on men dressed in loincloths before they attend a naked festival where men dressed in loincloths snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonA man carries a boy on his shoulders during a naked festival where men dressed in loincloths snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths take their selfie as they prepare to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonA man dressed in loincloth reacts after he fails to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths run around the temple after walking in purification pool during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonA man dressed in loincloth reacts after he fails to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonMen dressed in loincloths cheer each other on before they enter a temple building to snatch a wooden stick called "shingi" tossed by the priest during a naked festival at Saidaiji Temple in Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan February 15, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
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