SAGAMI-NO-KUNI SHRINE FESTIVAL ARCHIVE
～ The Digital Heritage of Shinto Festivals, Mikoshi and Matsuri-Bayashi in Kanagawa ～
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●My Mission to Preserve Living History
Welcome to the ultimate digital archive dedicated to preserving the sacred rituals, portable shrines (Mikoshi), and traditional festival music (Matsuri-Bayashi) of the historic Sagami-no-Kuni (modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan).
Managed by Goro Soeda, an active festival participant and traditional Matsuri-Bayashi musician himself, this non-profit project documents the living history of Japanese communities. Each festival is preserved through hundreds of field photographs and unedited video footage that capture the raw, authentic reality of Japanese traditions.
●Unique Essence of Japanese Festivals
Throughout Japan, every local district enshrines its own unique Shrine, and each community regularly holds its own distinct festivals (Matsuri). On a global scale, this widespread co-existence of micro-local traditions is incredibly rare, a phenomenon deeply rooted in the long history Japan has walked. Through these traditional festivals, the Japanese people have deepened community bonds while nurturing essential values such as respect, etiquette, and a spirit of harmony.
It is my heartfelt prayer that people all over the world will come to know these wonderful Japanese festival traditions, and that this knowledge will inspire a more harmonious, spiritually rich, and peaceful world.
●Explore My Archives
・[Shrine Festivals by District] : Discover local festivals and historical backgrounds across Kanagawa.
・[Mikoshi (Portable Shrine)] : Explore and deepen our understanding of the Mikoshi, which carries the deity through the designated parish area.
・[Matsuri-Bayashi (Festival Music)] : Learn about the traditional bamboo flute and drum patterns passed down through generations.
★ [Official YouTube Channel] : Experience the festival’s raw energy and thunderous, immersive sounds by visiting the "GORO-Channel" YouTube page.
★ [Official Instagram Account] : Follow my Instagram for photos and information showcasing real-time festival action.
●Tip for International Visitors
・[How to Browse This Site] : While my deeper archive pages are written in Japanese, you can read the entire website by using your browser's automatic translation feature.
・[Peak Seasons] : Shinto shrine festivals in Japan are primarily concentrated in three seasons, each with its own deep meaning: (1) Spring Festivals (around April) to pray for a bountiful harvest, (2) Summer Festivals (around July) to pray for protection against illness and plagues, and (3) Autumn Festivals (around September) to give thanks for the harvest. Outside of these periods, Mikoshi processions and Matsuri-Bayashi music tend to appear at non-shrine public events and local celebrations.
・[Festival Etiquette] : Please keep a safe distance from the Mikoshi and do not touch the traditional instruments. Let's respect the sacred rituals together!
| English | Japanese | Language (Code) | Country／Region | National Flag | |
| ASIA, PACIFIC & ENGLISH（アジア・太平洋・英語圏） | |||||
| 1 | English | 英語 | English (en) | USA,UK, Australia, Canada, NZ etc. |      |
| 2 | Japanese | 日本語 | 日本語 (ja) | Japan |  |
| 3 | Simplified Chinese | 簡体字 | 简体中文 (zh-CN) | China, Singapore |   |
| 4 | Traditional Chinese | 繁体字 | 繁體中文 (zh-TW) | Taiwan, Hong Kong |   |
| 5 | Korean | 韓国語 | 한국어 (ko) | South Korea |  |
| 6 | Thai | タイ語 | ภาษาไทย (th) | Thailand |  |
| 7 | Vietnamese | ベトナム語 | Tiếng Việt (vi) | Vietnam |  |
| 8 | Indonesian | インドネシア語 | Bahasa Indonesia (id) | Indonesia |  |
| 9 | Malay | マレー語 | Bahasa Melayu (ms) | Malaysia, Brunei |   |
| 10 | Tagalog | タガログ語 | Tagalog (tl) | Philippines |  |
| SOUTH ASIA（南アジア） | |||||
| 11 | Hindi | ヒンディー語 | हिन्दी (hi) | India |  |
| 12 | Bengali | ベンガル語 | বাংলা (bn) | Bangladesh, India (West Bengal) |  |
| 13 | Nepali | ネパール語 | नेपाली (ne) | Nepal |  |
| 14 | Urdu | ウルドゥー語 | اُردُو (ur) | Pakistan, India |  |
| 15 | Sinhala | シンハラ語 | සිංහල (si) | Sri Lanka |  |
| EUROPE & LATIN AMERICA（ヨーロッパ・中南米） | |||||
| 16 | French | フランス語 | Français (fr) | France, Belgium, Switzerland, etc. |    |
| 17 | German | ドイツ語 | Deutsch (de) | Germany, Austria, Switzerland |   |
| 18 | Italian | イタリア語 | Italiano (it) | Italy,Switzerland |  |
| 19 | Spanish | スペイン語 | Español (es) | Spain, Mexico, Argentina, etc. |      |
| 20 | Portuguese | ポルトガル語 | Português (pt) | Portugal, Brazil |   |
| 21 | Dutch | オランダ語 | Nederlands (nl) | Netherlands, Belgium |  |
| 22 | Polish | ポーランド語 | Polski (pl) | Poland |  |
| 23 | Swedish | スウェーデン語 | Svenska (sv) | Sweden,Finland |   |
| 24 | Danish | デンマーク語 | Dansk (da) | Denmark |  |
| 25 | Norwegian | ノルウェー語 | Norsk (no) | Norway |  |
| 26 | Finnish | フィンランド語 | Suomi (fi) | Finland | |
| 27 | Greek | ギリシャ語 | Ελληνικά (el) | Greece, Cyprus |   |
| 28 | Ukrainian | ウクライナ語 | Українська (uk) | Ukraine |  |
| 29 | Russian | ロシア語 | Русский (ru) | Russia |  |
| 30 | Czech | チェコ語 | Čeština (cs) | Czech Republic |  |
| 31 | Romanian | ルーマニア語 | Română (ro) | Romania, Moldova |   |
| 32 | Hungarian | ハンガリー語 | Magyar (hu) | Hungary |  |
| 33 | Lithuanian | リトアニア語 | Lietuvių (lt) | Lithuania |  |
| MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA（中東・アフリカ） | |||||
| 34 | Arabic | アラビア語 | العربية (ar) | Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, etc. |     |
| 35 | Turkish | トルコ語 | Türkçe (tr) | Turkey |  |
| 36 | Persian | ペルシャ語 | فارسی (fa) | Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan |    |
| 37 | Kazakh | カザフ語 | Қазақ тілі (kk) | Kazakhstan |  |
| 38 | Mongolian | モンゴル語 | Мөнгол хэл (mn) | Mongolia |  |
| 39 | Swahili | スワヒリ語 | Kiswahili (sw) | Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, etc. |    |
| 40 | Quechua | ケチュア語 | Runasimi (qu) | Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador |    |
★Please contact me if there is any other language you would like me to add.