Soma Nomaoi Horse Festival

The Manila Times

Soma Nomaoi Horse Festival  The three-day Soma Nomaoi festival, held every July in Minami-Soma, Fukushima, dates back over 1,000 years to a custom where warriors caught wild horses with their bare hands. The festival features about 400 riders, dressed in the samurai garb of their ancestors. After a parade, a race in full armor, and a contest to catch flying flags, the climax of the festival, takes us back to its roots - riders, now in all-white clothes, catch unsaddled horses to offer them to the shrine as a prayer for peace and prosperity.  VIDEO BY MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF JAPAN  Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe    Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net    Follow us:  Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook  Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram  Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter  DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion    Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital    Check out our Podcasts:  Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify  Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts  Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic  Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer  Stitcher: https://tmt.ph/stitcher Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein   #TheManilaTimes #Japan #tradition #horse #festival

Transcript

00:00 (upbeat music)

00:02 - Around here, you see images of horses wherever you look.

00:10 Often ridden by samurai in armor.

00:15 There are even horse statues at local temples and shrines.

00:20 This is the city of Minamisoma in Fukushima.

00:28 Each July, it holds the Soma Noma Oi,

00:31 a horse festival featuring riders

00:33 in traditional samurai armor.

00:35 In the days before the festival,

00:42 the riders devote themselves to serious training.

00:45 Hangui Masaki is from a family who have raised horses

00:53 and ridden in the festival for many generations.

00:57 My earliest memories are of watching

01:00 and then riding in the Noma Oi.

01:03 You could say that my whole life has revolved

01:06 around horses and this festival.

01:08 Before the festival, riders attend a ceremony

01:15 at their local shrine.

01:16 Everyone proudly wears the samurai robes of their ancestors.

01:26 The Soma Noma Oi is over 1,000 years old.

01:30 It's said to have originated as a kind of martial training

01:33 where warriors captured horses barehanded.

01:36 The samurai era ended in the 19th century,

01:42 but the love of horses remains strong in this area.

01:45 Local shrines created the festival

01:48 to keep those samurai horse traditions alive.

01:54 Essential to everything from transportation to farming,

01:57 horses have always been venerated here.

02:00 Taking part in the festival requires a lot of support

02:06 from riders' families.

02:07 Hangui's son, Koyo, still at high school,

02:12 helps him prepare his steed.

02:14 I can't wait to ride too.

02:22 Hangui wears the armor of his ancestors

02:24 lovingly preserved through many generations.

02:26 We can't let this tradition die.

02:32 Fortunately, I have three grandchildren.

02:34 Donning his helmet, Hangui sets off.

02:38 Starting from their local shrines,

02:41 the riders form a procession to the main festival site.

02:44 It's a magnificent display.

02:49 400 riders in full samurai armor

02:52 bearing the banners of their warrior ancestors.

02:54 The crowds are gathering for the highlight of the festival,

03:04 the Kachu-Keiba race.

03:06 This is a test of horses' handling skill

03:11 as well as just speed.

03:13 For Hangui, this is the moment he's been waiting for.

03:19 Riders set off in groups of six

03:21 to race around the 1,000-meter course.

03:23 At full gallop, horse and rider become one.

03:35 In the next event, 40 flags are fired,

03:44 one after the other, high into the sky.

03:47 Riders compete to catch them before they touch the ground.

03:50 Hangui emerges victorious from the scrum, flag in hand.

04:03 For the last event, unsaddled horses

04:10 are driven into the shrine precincts.

04:16 Clad in traditional white costumes,

04:17 men attempt to catch the horses with their bare hands,

04:20 just like the old samurai did.

04:23 Hangui throws himself again and again into the fray.

04:27 Captured horses are led to the shrine

04:34 for a dedication ceremony.

04:36 Thanks to the support of my family and friends,

04:41 I made it through safely.

04:43 It's a great feeling.

04:45 The festival began as a prayer for prosperity and peace in society,

04:49 and it continues to have that same meaning today.

04:52 Much has changed over the centuries,

04:54 but this has remained constant.

04:56 The Soma Noma'oi,

05:00 a 1,000-year-old tradition

05:02 celebrating the bond between human and horse.

05:06 (HORSE NEIGHS)

05:08 (MUSIC ENDS)

05:10 (MUSIC ENDS)

05:13 (MUSIC ENDS)

05:15 (MOUSE CLICKS)

05:17 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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