300 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



Photograph from Jill Jones 



A PORTABLE FESTIVAL SHRINE CARRIED BY JAPANESE LADS 



Out of the agricultural life of the countryside have grown those festivals which the people 

 celebrate with the greatest zest and enjoyment. 



■ 



Photograph by Kiyoshi Sakamoto 



ANCIENT COSTUMES AND THE FLOWER UMBRELLA USED DURING THE AOI FESTIVAL 



This festival is held every year in honor of the Tokugawa Shoguns, who were for 250 

 years the de facto ruling power in Japan. The "aoi," or wild ginger leaf, appears on the 

 crest of the Tokugawa family. 



