An annual event to drive away pests from rice plants, called "Ineno Mushi Okuri," was held on July 6 in the Tamonin area of Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, with around 70 residents and others walking through paddy fields in a procession, carrying torches.
The tradition, which had long been observed in the area, was discontinued after a 1953 typhoon disaster. It was revived only in 2013 by a group of senior citizens, and has since been held annually in early July.
This year, participants included not just area children and their parents but workers involved in the operation of the Maizuru-Wakasa Expressway, which passes through the area.
The participants lit their torches and began marching at 7 p.m. on July 6 before the sun had completely set. Over about an hour and a half along Sobotani River, they sang a tune to the beat of a bell.
"Let's expel insects from rice plants, beating the hyotan (gourd) and sending them off to the island off the shore."
As the night sky darkened, the brightly lit torches created a spectacle in the passageways of the paddy fields.
"I don't usually get so close to fire, so it was really hot, but it was also very fun," a 9-year-old fourth grader at the local Shinmaizuru Elementary School said with a smile.
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