This week has been a little crazy for me! It’s officially midterm season, so I’ve had a little less time to travel! However, I took this time to reflect back on a tradition I have been exposed to at AIU. While I wasn’t in Japan yet for the annual festival, AIU has a local Kanto team that works tirelessly year-round to prepare for small local festivals, events and ceremonies, as well as prepare for the big Kanto festival in August.
Kanto is a 270 year-old tradition (older than the U.S.!) to welcome in a good harvest and mark the of summer. It takes place yearly in early August and is one of the biggest traditions in the Tohoku region, the area of Japan where Akita Prefecture is.
During the festival, 10,000 lanterns are balanced on large poles that are accompanied by drums, singing and chanting from the members of a Kanto team. The tall pole’s typical 46 lanterns are over 40 feet tall (12m), weigh roughly 110 lbs (50 kg) and are switched between being balanced in the hand, on the palm, on shoulders and the backs of those who hold them. During these festivals, strict gender roles are enforced. The women are the ones who play the music, while the men hold the poles. This, supposedly, comes from the idea that women are considered impure.
