Visit Nara

On August 14 and 15, the final days of Obon (the season in which spirits of the dead are said to return to the realm of the living), this rite is carried out to send visiting spirits off in a big way. Leaving the standard gentle Obon festivities to other towns, the participants of this fire festival in Kashihara bear massive torches on their shoulders, parading them around town between Hachimanjinja and Kasugajinja Shrines. Over the two days, boisterous groups of young men port 17 torches of various sizes in fiery fashion, the largest weighing nearly 500kg. The festival has a history of more than 400 years and is recognized to be of vast cultural importance by the prefecture of Nara.