Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki

Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki of Kamigamo Shrine is presented here. Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki is held every year on May 1st at Kamigamo Shrine. Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki is held before Kamo-Kurabeuma (horse race), where the pairing of the horses and the order of entry for Kamo-Kurabeuma are determined by ketsuke-no-gi, sugake, and kyochi. The combination of the jockeys (norijiri) and horses is determined by the kuji-tori (lottery) in late April.

• Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki Schedule
• Kamigamo Shrine Location Map ＆ Directions
• Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki brief overview

【Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki 2024 Schedule (confirmation required)】

Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki will be held on Wednesday, May 1, 2024, from about 13:00. The ritual will begin at about 12:30.
Aoi Matsuri Festival 2024

【Kamigamo Shrine Location Map ＆ Directions】

Address: 339 Motoyama, Kamigamo, Kita-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan
Access (How to get there): Kamigmojinja-mae bus stop (short walk), Subway Kitayama Station (about 15 minutes on foot)

【Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki brief overview】

Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki (賀茂競馬足汰式) of Kamigamo Shrine (上賀茂神社) is held every year on May 1st, before Kamo-Kurabeuma (賀茂競馬), which is held every year on May 5th. At Kamo-Kurabeuma Ashisoroe-shik, the pairing of the horses and the order of entry for Kamo-Kurabeuma (horse race) are determined. By the way, the combination of jockeys (norijiri) and horses is determined by the kuji-tori (lottery) in late April. The name of the manor (shinryo) is written on the lottery, and the jockey (norijiri) rides the horse with the name of the manor.
At Kamo-Kurabeuma Ashisoroe-shik, a Shinto ritual is first held, and the jockey’s whip is purified in the Sawada-gawa River that flows in front of Yamaguchi Shrine, and then ashiarai-no-gi is held to purify the horse’s feet and the jockey’s tabi (Japanese socks) in the Nara-no-ogawa (river). Next, ketsuke-no-gi is held at Geheiden, where various officials such as the Shinto priest, shoshidai, mokudai, bugyo, guardian, etc. check the horse’s age and health condition based on the color of the horse’s coat and teeth. Afterwards, at Kamo-Kurabeuma Ashisoroe-shik, sugake was held, in which the horses ran one by one from Ichi-no-Torii (gate) to Ni-no-Torii (gate) to test the speed of the horses and the skill of the jockey (posture on horseback, pointing the whip, etc.). During sugegae, the jockey performs a prescribed performance in which the whip is pointed three times at Geheiden. After sugake, bandate is held to determine the pairing of the horses and the order of entry, in which the horses run two at a time, and then kyochi is held, in which two horses each run in the same way as Kamo-Kurabeuma. However, kyochi does not decide the winner or loser. By the way, if there is a big difference, the horses are swapped.
★In Kamo-Kurabeuma Ashisoroe-shik, the costume of the jockey (nokijiri) is different from that of Kamo-Kurabeuma. It is said that only the descendants of the priests of Kamigamo Shrine can be the jockey. The Kamo clan are the descendants of Kamo Takekaku-no-mikoto, who led the 1st Emperor Jinmu on his expedition to the East as the Yatagarasu (three-legged crow), and was given the family name Kamo Agatamushi and ruled the Yamashiro (Kyoto) area.
★Kamo-Kurabeuma was originally held at Butokuden of the Imperial Palace to pray for peace and a good harvest, but in 1093, the 73rd Emperor Horikawa moved it from Butokuden to Kamigamo Shrine. In Kamokurabe-uma, the horses are divided into two groups, red of the left side and black of the right side, and start about a horse’s length apart, with the front horse winning if the gap widens and the back horse winning if the gap narrows.
★The horses are named after former manors of Kamigamo Shrine, including the 1st manor, Mimasaka-no-kuni Shidori-no-sho, the 2nd manor, Kaga-no-kuni Kanedu-no-sho, Harima-no-kuni Anjo-no-sho, Noto-no-kuni Tsuchida-no-sho, and so on.

【Kamigamo Shrine History】
Kamigamo Shrine is officially called Kamo Wakeikaduchi Shrine. Kamigamo Shrine is said to have its origins in ancient times, when the enshrined deity, Kamo Wakeikaduchi-no-mikoto, descended to Koyama, located north-northwest of the present shrine building. It is said that Kamo Jingu Shrine was built in 677, and Kamigamo Shrine was founded before that time. Kamigamo Shrine, along with Shimogamo Shrine, enshrines the clan deity of Kamo, and together they were called Kamo Shrine.

【Kamo-Kurabeuma-Ashisoroeshiki of Kamigamo Shrine remarks】
Always check with the organizer for event information. Information on this site is for reference only. Contents of the event may have changed.
葵祭2024日程（行事・・・）