June Lily Festival at Isagawa Shrine: A Timeless Celebration in Nara

2025/05/18

On June 17th at 10:30 a.m., Isagawa Shrine—Nara City’s oldest Shinto shrine—hosts its enchanting annual Lily Festival, or Saikusa Matsuri. Though tucked away in a modern urban setting just five minutes south of Kintetsu-Nara Station, this small and historic shrine comes vividly to life in a celebration steeped in imperial legend and ancient ritual.

Dating back to the year 701, the Lily Festival was once a state-level rite, held alongside ceremonies at Omiwa Shrine to ward off disease and disasters. Today, its spiritual purpose remains, honoring Himetara Isuzuhime no Mikoto, the empress-consort of Emperor Jinmu, and offering prayers for health, safe childbirth, and familial protection. The principal goddess and her divine parents, also enshrined here, are remembered with offerings of white and black sake—barrels adorned with lilies, the sacred sasayuri (bamboo lily), a rare flower native to Japan.

During the festival, visitors can witness the refined sacred dances of miko (shrine maidens), who perform with lilies in hand. These dances serve as both purification and divine offering—ancient movements reenacting myth and tradition. The shrine grounds are festooned with floral arrangements, drawing the eye to a ceremony that feels intimate yet echoes with the authority of centuries past.

While Isagawa Shrine is normally a quiet spot, the festival brings with it a sense of vibrant celebration. Beyond the rituals and performances, visitors can enjoy uniquely designed charms (omamori), prayer plaques (ema), and lily-themed accessories like tie-clips and cufflinks.

Whether you’re drawn by historical interest, spiritual resonance, or simply the elegance of the miko dances, the Lily Festival offers a rare opportunity to step into a living tradition that connects modern-day Nara with the sacred past of Japan’s imperial mythology.

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