The Month of the Gods in Izumo (11/15-12/14/2020)

It’s Thanksgiving week in the U.S., but my mind somehow wandered to my hometown, Izumo, and an image, the first photo on the right, popped up in my mind.

The first photo shown is the Torii gate on a big rock on the Inasano-hama beach. I’m posed with my sister November last year. :)

I did a web search of the beach, and found that The Festival starts today, November 24th.

THE FESTIVAL STARTS TODAY AT INASANO-HAMA BEACH
In the 10th month of the lunar calendar, all the gods throughout Japan gather and hold meetings in Izumo, Shimane Prefecture in Japan. Throughout Japan, that month is called “Kanna-zuki” — The Month of No Gods — because all the gods leave the places where they reside in order to gather in Izumo; on the other hand, in Izumo, that month is called Kamiari-zuki — The Month of the Gods. This year, it’s from 11/15 to 12/14.

There is a festival held to celebrate such a time called the Kamiari Festival. The events take place from the 10th to the 17th of the 10th lunar month each year, which is November 24th to December 1st this year.

The festival begins with the welcoming of the gods on the first day at Inasano-hama (the beach above). The gods are then escorted to Izumo-Taisha, the oldest shrine in Japan, and a welcoming ceremony is held. The second photo is the welcoming event at the beach.

THE FESTIVAL CARRIES ON AT IZUMO-TAISHA SHRINE
Over the following seven days the gods hold meetings and there are a series of rituals held to entertain gods at the shrine, Izumo-Taisha. During their stay, the local residents are quiet and refrain from dancing or playing loud music not to disturb the meetings.

My hometown is a very quiet suburb city with no Shinkansen or bullet train passing by, but I see more and more people visit those shrines and temples every year. There are many power spots in my hometown, and those spots attract young people who are more spiritual in recent years.

The popularity to live there has also increased, they work remotely and enjoy beautiful nature which is becoming quite common especially this year.

The last two photos of newly-wed couples were taken at Izumo-Taisha in 2016 at the shrine. In fact my husband and I saw 8 newly wed couples in 6 cities across Japan during this trip. ;)

Reference: izumooyashiro.gr.jp and japancheapo.com

Love and Light,

Tomoe