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| Bullfinch Exchange Festival (Usokae) |
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When:
Annually in January (2011 TBC)
Where: Dazaifu Tenmangu ,Fukuoka, Japan
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Bullfinch Exchange Festival (Usokae) is a traditional event where the believers carry out a ritual struggle between the good and the evil forces. The events are held in Dazaifu Tenmangu shrine in Fukuoka Prefecture.
Every year, in January's evenings, groups of believers gather in the shrine. They carry a wooden carvings of bullfinches (a red chest songbird) called in Japanese Kiuso or in short Uso. In Japanese uso is a double meaning word; the name of the bird and also lie.
The ceremony begins at dark; the wooden birds are transferred between the hands and the participants. The believers hope to get the golden bird that the priest had added to the other common birds.
Due to the double meaning of the word uso, the common bullfinches symbols the evil and the golden bullfinches symbols the good.
Those who get the golden bird, believe that the evil was sent away from them and in return they got the good the truth.
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IMPORTANT:
Please note that the details of the event are subject to change.
We strongly recommended that you check with the organizers
before making any travel arrangements.
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Event related information:
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Dazaifu Tenmangu
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Contact:
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Dazaifu Tenmangu
4-7-1 Saifu
Dazaifu
Fukuoka
818-0195
Fukuoka, Japan
Phone: +81 (0)92 922 8225
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| Admission fee: |
Free |
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background and overview:
In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Following the Treaty of Kanagawa with the US in 1854, Japan opened its ports and began to intensively modernize and industrialize. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and Russia. It occupied Korea, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Sakhalin Island.
In 1931-32 Japan occupied Manchuria, and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of China. Japan attacked US forces in 1941 - triggering America's entry into World War II - and soon occupied much of East and Southeast Asia. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power and a staunch ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives.
The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally. In 2005, Japan began a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
[Courtesy of The World Factbook]
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 Location: Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula. |
Languages:
Japanese |
Climate:
Varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north . |
Capital:
Tokyo |
Time Zone:
UTC+9 |
Currency (code):
yen (JPY) |
Call Code:
+81 |
Electric Power:
100V 50/60 Hz |
Tourist office:
Japan National Tourism Organization 10th Floor, Tokyo Kotsu Kaikan Building, 2-10-1Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0006 |
Tourist website:
Click Here |
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