Event calendar

Participants offer prayers for good health to a huge bonfire whose flames rise up toward the heavens. Although many temples have bonfires, called tondo, the 5-meter blaze at Ebaraji Temple is particularly large.
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This traditional and graceful festival adds color to the already brilliant flower season. Today the Hanatsumi ("flower-picking") Maidens carry on a tradition that originated during the Heian period as a ritualistic prayer for good health.
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Chosen as one of Osaka's 100 most beautiful natural spots and famous among Sakai residents for its azalea bushes, Aasakayama Water Purification Plant opens to the general public at the end of April. Many visit the plant's grounds to view the beautiful flowers of the gigantic hirado azaleas.
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In keeping with its goal of becoming a city known for culture, creativity, and a living history, Sakai sponsors many culture-promoting events. The Sakata Sankichi Memorial Shogi Tournament is part of this program and was organized to commemorate the life of Sakata Sankichi, one of the city's pioneers and a shogi player of remarkable genius. The event attracts amateurs from around the nation.
Sponsors: City of Sakai, Sakai Board of Education
Information: National Shogi Tournament Office of the Sakai Cultural Foundation, (TEL: 072-252-5993; FAX: 072-252-5902)
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Every year Sakai residents flock to see 1,000 hydrangea in full bloom on the plant's grounds.
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Sakai Grand Evening Fish Market recreates a festival originally held in the Kamakura period. Events include a traditional Japanese-style auction and fish sales in a lively atmosphere with merchants with old-fashioned topknot-tied hair and participation by foreigners.
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This traditional event is held to pray for good health by lighting lamps and offering them to the spirits of all things. On the evening of Obon (August 15), over 1,000 lanterns representing the prayers of their creators flicker with candlelight, imparting the temple grounds with a surreal beauty.
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Aguchi Shrine
(TEL 072-221-0171)
Sugawara Shrine
Hochigai Shrine
Funamachi Shrine
Iwatsuta Shrine
(At Iwatsuta Shrine, the festival is held in early August.)Mozuhachimangu Shrine
(TEL 072-252-1089)

Futondaiko floats are a famous part of the Sakai region's autumn festivals, when people carry them on their shoulders as they process through town. The five-layered vermillion cushions form a seat for the festival's god and are appropriately vivid in their appearance. In Sakai, the floats are used by many shrines, including Aguchi Shrine, in autumn fall festivals. Mozuhachimangu Shrine in particular is famous for its autumn festival, which is also known as the Tsukimi ("moon-viewing") Festival due to the fact that it is timed to coincide with the harvest moon. During this magnificent and dynamic festival, 17 futondaiko floats of all sizes move in and out of the shrine over the course of two days.
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Said to have originated as a rain dance, the Ko-odori festival is held at the Sakurai Shrine and has been designated an Intangible Folk-cultural Property. The humorous dance performed by 17 dancers dressed as demons and long-nosed tengu goblins has been passed down from generation to generation since the Kamakura period. The dance is first presented at the site of the Kuni Shrine, after which it heads toward Sakurai Shrine. The procession of dancers singing religious songs is reminiscent of a fairytale.
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Along with the Futondaiko Festival, the Danjiri Festival is typical of the Sakai region's autumn festivals. Rolling danjiri carts are pulled through the streets in a lively festival overflowing with energy and vigor that is famously unique to the Senshu area. In Sakai, individual neighborhoods maintain over 80 danjiri carts and take great pride in the festival's rich historical traditions. In October of each year, the festival begins at Otori Shrine and continues at the autumn festivals of numerous shrines.
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The Sakai Festival has highlighted the city's proud traditions during the two days ending on the third Sunday of October every year since 1974. The festival features a variety of events held along the Oshoji Symbol Road leading to the town center and in Xavier Park at the site of the medieval merchant Hibiya Ryokei. Central to the festival is an enormous and elaborately staged parade featuring a total of 12,000 participants that includes the city's distinctive "Nanbanbune" floats, performances by groups of brave soldiers wielding matchlock guns, and processions of folk costumes from around the world. Typically attracting more than 600,000 attendees, the event captures Sakai's uniquely historic and international flavor with attractions such as the "Nanban Market," where visitors can purchase local specialties.
Sponsor/information: Sakai Tourism and Convention Bureau (TEL: 072-233-5258; FAX: 072-233-8448)
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About 15,000 people enjoy the tea ceremony over the course of two clear, autumn days, starting with the Onotenseki ceremony at Daisen Park and continuing at the Sakai Shin'an Tea House on the grounds of the Nanshuji Temple. Sponsor/information: Sakai Tourism and Convention Bureau (TEL: 072-233-5258; FAX: 072-233-8448)
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The Sakai Agricultural Festival features the "Tore-tore Market," where visitors can purchase fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables; judging contests for produce and livestock; a flower and plant market; a local specialties market; and a playground for children. Sponsor: Sakai Agricultural Festival Steering Council Information: Farm and Fisheries Section of the Sakai City Economic Bureau Agricultural Administration (TEL: 072-228-6971; FAX: 072-228-7370)
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Yassaihossai consists of a ritual where 108 bundles of charcoal are burned in front of the shrine's altar as people walk across the resulting fire. It is said that bringing home a charcoal ember confers protection against evil spirits.
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