Arab News Japan

TOKYO: The Japanese celebrate the end of the New Year period with a ritual known as “Dondoyaki,” in which New Year decorations are burned to pray for good health and safety in the coming year.

At Suwa Shrine in Tokyo, decorations such as kadomatsu pine ornaments, shimenawa ropes and calligraphy were set on fire, reflecting gratitude, renewal, and community bonding.

Similar fires are set around the country, sometimes in shrines or temples, other times at community areas. The Japanese hope this will bring a year free of diseases and disasters.

Some fires are quite modest and local people come out with their New Year decorations and throw them into the flames. Other communities build “Yagura,” huge conical towers constructed with bamboo, Japanese cedar, straw, and reeds. These can reach over 10 meters in height.

Local people gather in the morning and pray for happiness in the coming year in front of the Yagura tower where the deity is said to be enshrined.

The tower can burn to the ground in a matter of minutes. When it is safe, some people grill rice cakes over the embers as it believed that by eating these, people can stay healthy throughout the year.