murmurAofushigaki Shinji (Green Brushwood Fence Ritual) at Miho Shrine
Matsue City · Miho Shrine and Mihonoseki Harbor, Matsue
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Shimane Tourism Association (Shimane Tourism Navi) · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates not confirmed
- 2026
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually early April
- How the date is set
- Every year on April 7
- Venue
- Miho Shrine and Mihonoseki Harbor, Matsue
- City
- Matsue City, Shimane
About
On April 7 every year, Miho Shrine in Mihonoseki, Matsue, sends two boats decked with green brushwood fences around the harbor. Aboard are the toya, the person chosen to serve as the shrine's priest for the year, and his wife. From the day before, the toya stays shut away in a special hall at the shrine, fasting and purifying himself. Each boat holds an enclosure about 3.6 meters square, with sakaki branches standing at its four corner posts. After circling the harbor, the couple visit Miho Shrine to make offerings. The rite goes back to a myth about the shrine's deity Kotoshironushi, known affectionately as Ebisu: asked by Okuninushi about giving up the land, he agreed, then hid himself in the sea behind a fence of green brushwood.
Sources
- OfficialShimane Tourism Association (Shimane Tourism Navi) www.kankou-shimane.com
Last checked: Oct 11, 2026. Event information is based on official announcements, but changes may not always be reflected here. Please check each official website for accurate details.
Other events this month
On the day, see what locals are murmuring on the murmur map
murmur is an app that shows short, anonymous posts on a map, right where they were written. On festival day, open the map around the venue and see what people nearby are saying.