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Japan Photo Journal: Lantern festival held away from public at Kasuga Taisha shrine The Mainichi © The Mainichi (Mainichi/Yoshiyuki Hirakawa)
The Setsubun Mantoro, or lantern festival, was celebrated on Feb. 2, 2021 at the Kasuga Taisha shrine away from the public due to the spread of the coronavirus. The annual event which has been held since a revival in 1888 takes place on the day of the Setsubun festival, and lanterns are lit on the shrine s grounds to pray for the safety of families and others. This year, to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the number of lanterns that were lit up was reduced to 1,000, about one-third the usual total. At around 4:30 p.m., priests and shrine maidens wearing masks lit the hanging lanterns in the corridor, creating a fantastic glow in the deserted precincts. Hirotada Kasannoin, the chief priest of the shrine, said, I pray that many people will feel at peace and come back to this place to enjoy the lantern fes
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Yoshiyuki-hirakawa
ஜப்பான்
ஜப்பானிய
கசுகா-தைஷா