Photos: Nekosuki · CC BY-SA 4.0 (1, 2, 3, 4) · Grendelkhan · CC BY-SA 4.0
For about ten days around the summer doyō-no-ushi day, visitors to Shimogamo Shrine roll up their trousers, wade the knee-deep spring water of the Mitarashi pond carrying a lit candle, and set it at the altar of the Mitarashi-sha for a year of health. The pond is the namesake of mitarashi dango.
Why it's unique
This is a local ritual you take part in, not a procession you watch: you wade a spring-fed pond in the dark with a candle and place it at the altar yourself.
The notes are careful about scope. Kitano Tenmangu now runs a similar foot-dipping lantern rite in early August, so it is not unique even within the city, and the claim is held at subdivision level.
Before you go
Go after dark: the shrine stays open to 20:00 and the candle-lit pond is the point. The water is genuinely cold even in late July. Shoes go in a plastic bag at the entrance; bring a towel and wear something you can hitch up, and walk slowly or the candle goes out. Drink the sacred water on the way out.
In 2026 it ran 18 to 30 July (dates move each year), 9:00 to 20:00. The candle offering is ¥500, voluntary for junior-high age and under. Tel 075-781-0010.
