On the night of July 10, 2026, the "Mikoshi-arai" (portable shrine purification) ritual—in which a Gion Festival portable shrine is purified with water from the Kamo River—took place at Shijo Ohashi Bridge in Kyoto. As the portable shrine arrived from Yasaka Shrine (Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto) amidst the rhythmic chants of "Hoit, hoit," Shinto priests waved *sakaki* branches dipped in water, sending cool sprays of mist dancing through the humid night air.
This ritual purifies the "Nakagoza" (Central Shrine)—which carries the festival's principal deity, Susanoo-no-Mikoto—one of the three portable shrines that tour the Yasaka Shrine's parishioner districts during the Shinko-sai (Procession of Deities) on July 17 and the Kanko-sai (Return of Deities) on July 24.
Around 7:00 p.m., as the sound of cicadas echoed through the shrine grounds, the sacred "Okera-bi" fire from the altar was transferred to a large torch measuring approximately six meters in length. A procession then traveled to Shijo Ohashi Bridge and back, purifying the route along the way. Subsequently, men clad in white *happi* coats carried the Nakagoza out of the shrine and onto Shijo-dori Street.
The procession arrived at Shijo Ohashi Bridge shortly after 8:00 p.m. Watched by a crowd packing the sidewalks and a large number of bearers, a Shinto priest used a *sakaki* branch to sprinkle water that had been drawn up from the river in a bucket earlier that morning. The water spray is believed to ward off illness and ensure good health. Many small children were lifted high by their fathers and others, hoping to receive the divine blessing.
