Not just Namahage? Visiting gods from all over Tohoku who appear during Koshogatsu

"Any crying children here?" The Namahage of Oga, Akita, is known nationwide as a folk event representative of the Tohoku region

...But did you know that there are actually many gods all over the country who, although they may have different appearances and names, fulfill similar roles?

These are collectively called visiting gods

What is a visiting deity? A "god" in the form of a demon

A visiting deity is a folklore term that refers to a deity that comes to human settlements from the mountains, seas, or other worlds at the turn of the year or the turning of the seasons

• Wearing masks and costumes
• Visiting the houses
• Check out how people live
• Exorcise disasters and bestow good fortune

This characteristic is not only common to Namahage but also to folk events all over Japan

What is important is that the visiting deities are not "demons" but "gods," and their frightening demon-like appearances and bizarre figures wearing straw are not meant to frighten people, but are seen as visible manifestations of non-human beings

Why does it appear on "Koshogatsu"?

The time when the visiting gods appear varies slightly depending on the region, but in Tohoku they are concentrated between Little New Year (around January 15th)

is considered to be "another New Year" that celebrates the first full moon of the year.

• Be aware of the beginning of farming
• An important day to take down New Year's decorations and pray for peace in the new year

Because of this meaning, it has been seen as "the turning point where the year really begins to move."

At these important junctures, people needed to welcome the gods and have them check that their lives were going properly, and it is said that visiting gods played this role

Why visit houses instead of shrines?

One notable feature of visiting deities they visit each household .

This is thought to have been done with the idea that the gods would personally visit each "house" that made up the town or village, check on each family member living there, admonish lazy people, pray for fire prevention, and pray for happiness and peace, in order to start the year on a good note

Visiting deities remaining in various parts of Tohoku

From cute to terrifying, there are a variety of visiting gods throughout Tohoku

Lucky bale rolling and Kapakapa (Inakadate Village, Aomori Prefecture)

In the Inakadate Village and surrounding areas of Aomori Prefecture "Fukutawara Korogashi" in which children dress up as Daikokuten and go around to houses. When invited to the front door, they throw the lucky straw bale they are holding into the house, chanting "It has come in! It has come in! The lucky straw bale has come in!", praying for good health and safety for their families.

, a doll called "kapakapa" made from carrots and other ingredients

It is said that what were originally separate customs were eventually combined into one event, and rather than being a frightening figure that warns, they are characterized as visiting gods that directly bring good fortune

Link: Aomori Prefecture Hirakawa City Tourism Association – Kapakapa Fukutawara Rolling

Oga's Namabald (Oga City, Akita Prefecture)

, the Oga Namahage an essential presence .

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

Why do Nama balds take knives to tempt people - Oga Peninsula and the Legend of the Demon (1) [Akita Prefecture]

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/34981

When you hear the word Oga, the first thing that comes to mind is Namahage. Every year on New Year's Eve, demon-like people wearing masks with scary faces and costumes made of straw visit people's homes shouting, ``No lazy people, no crying children!'' In his hands, he holds a Deba knife and a bucket. Namahage descends to the village from Mt. Kamiyama to pray for the villagers not to be lazy in the winter and for good health and a good harvest in the new year (at the Namahage Chaito Festival) ©Akita PrefectureThe Namahage is scary at first glance, but... In fact, we are trying to punish the lazy people who spend all their time at the kotatsu and the irori hearth during the winter agricultural off-season, so that they will not get sick.

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Namahage the act of peeling flesh (namomihagi), as they come to admonish lazy people who spend all their time sitting around kotatsu or hearths during the winter farming off-season, and to remove namomi (brown bruises caused by low-temperature burns exposed to the fire for too long.

At first glance, it has a frightening, demon-like appearance, shakes doors, shouts loudly, and even carries a kitchen knife, making it a symbol of fear

However, in reality, it is said that the purpose of this deity is not to instill fear, but to provide warnings and admonitions against laziness, and to bring about good health and abundant harvests

Therefore, when Namahage visit a home, food and alcohol are prepared and they are treated with courtesy

Link: Namahage of Oga

Yoshihama's Sneka (Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture)

"Yoshihama no Suneka," said to reside in Yoshihama, Sanriku-cho, Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture, is a strange-looking visiting deity wearing a mask and straw raincoat. The masks come in a variety of shapes, including those of an animal, an insect, or a human.

Since ancient times, Koshogatsu has been considered a day when divine beings beyond human understanding come and go, and on this day Suneka appears and goes around the houses, rattling the abalone shell hanging from his waist and brandishing a knife to frighten children. His ultimate purpose is to good health and ward off evil , and family members treat Suneka by offering him rice cakes and gifts of money.

This custom is very similar to Oga's Namahage, which is said to have its origin in "namomihagi" (flesh-skinning) "sune no kawahagi" (shin-skinning), which refers to the act of peeling the skin .

Link: Ofunato City Official Website – UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage “Yoshihama Suneka”

Kasedori (Kaminoyama City, Yamagata Prefecture)

The Kasedori festival in Kaminoyama City, Yamagata Prefecture , is an event to pray for prosperous business, bountiful harvests, and fire prevention.

covering their entire bodies "kendai," they dress up as "Kasedori," a New Year's deity, based on the belief that "the voice of a god who comes from a faraway land on the first day of the New Year celebrates the prosperity of the year."

It is said that in the past there was a "Gozen Kasei" performance at the castle and a "Machikata Kasei" performance within the town, and nowadays the procession recreates this, starting with a dance performance in front of a bonfire set up in front of Kaminoyama Castle, and then proceeding to parade through the town

As the Kasedori bird vigorously sings "Kakkakka no Kakkakka!", people enthusiastically pour water called "iwai-mizu" (celebration water) onto it, praying for fire prevention

Link: Yamagata Prefecture Official Tourism Site – Kasedori

The water-spraying "Fire Man" and "Okame" of the Yonekawa River (Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture)

The "Yonekawa Water Sprinkling" ceremony which is held in Yonekawa, Towa-cho, Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture, is a fire prevention event that has been held for over 800 years, and when people who are in their unlucky years participate, it also has the meaning of warding off bad luck.

Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media NEFT

"Yonegawa Water Cows" is a visit event that is passed down on the Miyagi-Iwate Prefecture border | Local report [Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture]

https://jp.neft.asia/archives/38478

The Yonekawa Water-Burning Ceremony in Towa Town, Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture, is a Nationally Designated Important Intangible Cultural Property and a visiting deity event that was designated a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage on November 29, 2018. As of January 2025, there are 22 UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage sites in Japan, including 10 "Visiting Deities: Masked and Costumed Gods." Four of these, including the Yonekawa Water-Burning Ceremony, were registered in the Tohoku region at the same time. Tohoku's "UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage: Visiting Deities: Masked and Costumed Gods" include the Yonekawa Water-Burning Ceremony (Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture), Yoshihama Suneka (Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture), Oga Namahage (Oga City, Akita Prefecture), and Yusa's Little New Year Amahage (Yusa City, Yamagata Prefecture).

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On the day of the festival, in addition to the group of people who are sprinkling water on themselves to pray for fire prevention, two people dressed as Hyottoko and Okame

Hyottoko and Okame are " visiting gods who bring good fortune ," and since Hyottoko is written as "fire man," it is said that he is the temporary form of the fire god, and Okame is his companion god.

Okame carries a bucket on a balance pole, and Hyottoko, dressed in an ink-dyed monk's robe, quietly parades through the town ringing a bell

Link: Tome City Official Website – UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage “Yonekawa Water Splashing”

Higan Lion (Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture)

"Higan Lion Dance" from the Aizu region of Fukushima Prefecture features three lion dancers (the Tayushishi, the male lion, and the female lion) wearing lion heads, performing a dance to the accompaniment of flutes and drums, praying for the elimination of epidemics, bountiful harvests, and safety for the home.

As the name suggests, it is not held during the New Year but around the spring equinox (the Vernal Equinox), but it has the character of a visiting deity in that it visits houses, warding off disasters and bringing good fortune

In addition to the Aizu Higan Lion Festival in Aizuwakamatsu City the Seikatsu Higan Lion Festival and the Shimoshiba Higan Lion .

Link: Aizu Festival Association Official Website – Aizu Higan Lion Festival

summary

Various visiting gods appear from the New Year to early spring

They appear for a variety of purposes, from simply bringing blessings to being strict with us, giving us warnings and admonitions, and guiding us in the right direction in life

At the root of this may lie the hopes of the people of the Tohoku region, a harsh region that has long been cut off by snow, who were hoping for happiness in the new year

[Reference Book] An illustrated guide to Japan's visiting gods, who you can only see once a year – Seishun Publishing

Aoiwa

Traveling around the Tohoku region, I enjoy drinking delicious sake and exploring the local history, traditions, and customs. I write articles based on my interests. I'm currently interested in folk performing arts, local toys, and folk beliefs.