On 19 April each year, the confectionery trade gathers at Hayashi Jinja, inside Kangō Jinja, to honour Lin Jōin, who by tradition came from China in 1349, settled in Nara and made the first bean-paste manjū in Japan. Confectioners from across Japan, including the Tokyo house that claims his line, offer sweets.
Why it's unique
The founding story is tradition rather than proven history, but the festival is real and singular: a whole national trade turning up at one small shrine to honour the origin of its product.
It is a working festival, not a show, and the things you can eat that day are not sold anywhere else.
Before you go
There is a thousand-pestle mochi pounding (12:30 and 13:30 in recent years) with mochi handed out, a reconstructed Edo-period "Nara manjū" sold only that day, and Nara-period sweets reconstructed by a Nara Women's University researcher.
It runs 10:00 to 15:00, with the rite at 11:00. There is no official shrine website.
