Chochin Momi Lantern Festival (Nogi Shrine)

About

On the last Saturday night of November, Nogi Shrine in the town of Nogi holds a festival of jostling lanterns, said to date from the Kennin era in the early thirteenth century. It comes from a circuit in which the shrine's deity visited its seven parish villages. In the past, nearly naked young men chosen by each village held up tall lanterns in the procession, and at village boundaries they scuffled hard to bring the deity into their own village first, which is why it was also called hadaka momi, naked jostling. Over time it turned into a contest of lanterns on long bamboo poles. Today parishioners put up a hut for each neighborhood along the approach using locally made reed screens, snack on amazake and simmered vegetables, and smash their lit lanterns together to put out each other's flames. Daidai kagura is also offered in the kagura hall.

Sources

• OfficialTochigi Prefectural Tourism and Local Products Association (Tochigi Tabi-Net) www.tochigiji.or.jp

Last checked: Oct 10, 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

• Mashiko Autumn Pottery Fair