The procession in Heian costume, which is one of the three major festivals in Kyoto scheduled for May, will be canceled as it continued last year because the new coronavirus has not converged. It was decided.
What will be canceled is a procession of actors wearing Heian costumes, which is a feature of the "Aoi Matsuri" of the three major festivals in Kyoto, which is held on May 15th every year.
Prior to the procession, the miso ritual in which the protagonist of the festival, "Saiodai," which was scheduled to be held at Kamigamo Shrine in Kita-ku, Kyoto, cleans itself with river water, has also been cancelled.
This is the second consecutive year that the Aoi Matsuri procession has been canceled due to the effects of the new coronavirus.
On the other hand, the Shinto rituals held at Kamigamo Shrine and Shimogamo Shrine in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City are performed only by those involved in the shrine.
Mr. Sai Nishio, Secretary-General of the Aoi Matsuri Procession Preservation Society, said, "We have been preparing to implement this, but we decided to cancel it next year due to a painful decision because we could not fully prepare for infection. With that in mind, I would like to proceed with preparations such as checking and repairing insect-dried costumes and flower umbrellas. "