Overview
- The Saiodai performed the formal purification at Shimogamo Shrine ahead of the Aoi Matsuri set for May 15.
- Mao Shiomi, a 21-year-old Doshisha University senior and the 68th Saiodai, took part wearing a layered jūnihitoe robe.
- She dipped her fingertips into the shrine’s Mitarashi pond, breathed on a bamboo purification stick, and set it afloat to cast off impurity.
- After the rite, she said preparations felt complete and she would focus on staying healthy for the main procession from the Kyoto Imperial Palace to the Kamo shrines.
- The ceremony rotates each year between Shimogamo and Kamigamo shrines, reflecting a long-running system that guides the festival’s preparations.