Giant snake-shaped portable shrine parades through Japanese hot spring resort
Hundreds of people in Gunma Prefecture, north of Tokyo, have paraded with a special giant snake-shaped portable shrine for the first time in 12 years to mark the Year of the Snake, the Oriental zodiac symbol for 2025.
The Daija Festival got underway at the Oigami Onsen hot spring resort in the city of Numata on Friday. Daija means giant snake in Japanese. Legend has it that the god of the nearby Mount Akagi turned into a giant snake before spewing out hot spring water.
The annual event usually features a 30-meter-long portable shrine that is carried through the streets. But this year, the shrine measures more than 108 meters in celebration of the Year of the Snake.
About 300 people, including local junior and high school students, chanted as they lifted the 2-ton portable shrine and started parading through the streets.
Smiling visitors cheered them on. A woman from Saitama Prefecture, near Tokyo, said she felt energized.
The festival will continue through Saturday.
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