May 14, 2014
Warding off evil with snakes - the Snake Festival of Mamada
Kiyoshi Ogawa, Oyama City Museum
Festivals happen at set times during the year and are usually seen as a chance to wish for various things from Gods and Buddhas. They are a time to renew and cleanse the mind and body. Too much monotony in our lives can eat away at our mental and physical energy; festivals are an opportunity to take time off work and revitalize ourselves through the act of having a feast. Furthermore, the larger a festival becomes, the greater the need for mutual understanding and cooperation among the local people under a deity's protection, thus strengthening the bonds between people. The amount of effort that can be put towards a festival depends on the community's financial ability and the strength of its members: in other words, it requires collective power.
The festival that occurs every year on May 5 (Children's Day) in Mamada, Oyama City, Tochigi Prefecture was selected as an intangible folk cultural property in 2011 by the country. This festival, known as The Snake Festival of Mamada, originated during the Edo Period and involves prayers to ward off pestilence and increase the crop harvest. Rice straws are wrapped around cores of long-jointed bamboo, which are covered with ferns. Finally, snake heads are mounted on the end of these snake bodies, to create seven, 15m long snakes. Participants begin in the pond in Mamada Hachimangu Shrine with a prayer for rain, and then make a procession through the city to ward off evil, a truly stirring scene.
Snake gathering
This festival is one of the big events that occur in the Mamada community, and attracts a large number of visitors. However, there were many ups and downs that the community endured. The festival started at the end of the Edo Period and at that time only two snakes were made: one on each floor of the Mamada Inn on the Nikko Road. When the festival was done, the snakes were stored on the edge of the property to ward off evil. During the Meiji Period, the number of snakes increased to seven, and the date of the festival changed from April 8 to May 5, in order to enlist the help of children on Children's Day. New rituals were added within Hachimangu Shrine, such as the snakes gathering together and drinking water from the pond. Similar festivities began in the neighboring community of Otome. However, despite these changes, the basic ideas have not changed: people decorate house entrances with iris and wisteria flowers to welcome the snakes, and perform rituals for warding off evil and praying for rain. This is evidence that the wishes of the people involved in the festival have not changed, and proof that this festival has influenced the community's traditions and culture.
Drinking water
Culture is born through the daily lives of the people, and continues to live today. I believe this is the binding force that can bring the community together, while contributing to the improvement of the community culture.
I am convinced that the Snake Festival will be passed down as a traditional cultural item and that it will contribute to community activity by developing a fondness for Mamada when today’s children grow up to have children of their own.