All About Japan

People Are Grabbing Paper for Health

Festivals Kumamoto Kyushu
People Are Grabbing Paper for Health

People scramble to grab pieces of “sacred” paper from a demon at a Shinto shrine in southwestern Japan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faiWFtQoxms

This annual New Year ritual is taking place at a shrine. A demon is holding a bamboo stick with strips of paper. Visitors try to grab pieces of the sacred paper. But the monster whacks the stick to deter their efforts. The paper is believed to bring good health.