Choyo Festival at Kurumazaki Shrine

Held every September 9 at Kurumazaki Shrine in Saga, western Kyoto. Until the end of the Edo period this Choyo rite was performed on a grand scale in the syncretic Shinto-Buddhist manner; it lapsed with the Meiji separation of the two religions and was revived in 1997 after 130 years. Chrysanthemums are offered before the deity with prayers for beauty and health, and court dance is performed in the precincts. Once the ceremony ends, chrysanthemum sake is served free to worshippers and onlookers — a chance to take part directly in the original Choyo custom of drinking chrysanthemum-scented sake to drive off misfortune and pray for long life. The sake is served while supplies last. Kurumazaki is best known for its subsidiary Geino Shrine and the vermilion fence bearing the names of entertainers, but this day is a quiet one given over to the festival.