Attending a festival is the best way to get close to the local community and learn more about their culture and tradition. If you are planning to visit Kyushu for your upcoming new year celebrations, consider sparing yourself half a day to watch a group of men who brave themselves in the cold to celebrate the Tamaseseri, a traditional new year festival in Fukuoka.
Tamaseseri or Ball-Catching Festival is a traditional event that is held in the Hakozaki Shrine every year on the third of January. This festival is considered one of the major festivals of Kyushu and it has been around for more than 500 years since the Muromachi period. In a cold winter weather, the half-naked men in Shimekomi (loincloths) compete for an 8-kg wooden ball while getting showered with cold water. This purified wooden ball is believed that it can bring good luck and success to the person who can grab the ball and lift it high above his head.
Here are the highlights of the Tamaseseri festival 2017 that might interest you: