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The Piney Point

A centuries-old festival in Japan brings Shinto traditions and towering floats to the streets

A centuries-old festival in Japan brings Shinto traditions and towering floats to the streets
Photo: KPRC 2 / Click2Houston (NBC) · view original

There’s a special moment when Katsushi Horikawa feels closer to the gods. It comes as he rides atop one of the towering floats pulled through the streets in a centuries-old procession in Japan.This is the Gion Matsuri festival, born more than 1,000 years ago as a ritual to ward off epidemics and...

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