In Japan, thousands of men arrived at a temple to celebrate a special festival without clothes, as per the latest figures. This festival is called Hādīka-Matsuri. The first celebration of this festival took place at the popular Saidaiji Temple in Okayama. It dates back 1250 years. Amidst the cold weather, thousands of people participate in the festival, passing through water, which is considered sacred. Hādīka-Matsuri is celebrated every year in February. This year marked the final celebration of the festival. The reason behind this is the decline in Japan's youth population, leaving the burden of festival duties on the elderly.
It is also known as the Naked Man Festival. Participants in the festival only wear loincloths. It is celebrated on Honshu Island in southern Japan. Saidaiji Kannonin Temple is located on this island. The festival begins with women's dances. In the evening, people perform a pilgrimage around the temple. At night, priests throw bundles of sticks and wooden charms at the crowd through the temple's high window. It is believed that whoever catches these charms will have a lucky year. A local person is chosen as the Shin-Otoko, meaning God Man, of the festival.
Upon entering the temple, people have to touch the God Man. However, this year marked the final celebration of this thousand-year-old festival. Thousands of people from all over the country attend the festival. Japan's population is rapidly declining, resulting in very few young people. The monk Daigo Fujinami, who opened the temple in 729, said, "Organizing this grand festival is very difficult. You can see what happened today. There are so many people here, and it's also exciting. But there are many rituals and tasks behind the scenes that need to be done. I cannot turn a blind eye to this difficult reality."
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