English Language Teaching in Japan and Asia

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The Naked Man Festival (Hadaka Matsuri) is held annually at Kounomiya during the Lunar New Year (or Chinese New Year). It began over 1,200 years ago, in the year 767, when Nara was the capital of Japan. At that time, there were plagues affecting the Japanese people, so Emperor Shotoku ordered special prayers to be said nation wide. The governor of Owari Province (now Aichi Prefecture) asked the shrine at Kounomiya to do something about this, and to remove the bad luck. So, the Naked Man Festival, held in the coldest time in winter was formulated.