Although phallic symbol used to be an important figure in many pagan rites in the past, today it is taboo in most Western cultures. That Eastern culture is different from the Western is shown in many aspects, and one of them is the fact that there is a whole festival dedicated to phallus.
Every year in Japan, in a city of Kawasaki, a festival is held to celebrate the importance of phallus. It is called Kanamara Matsuri, or “Steel Phallus Festival”. The date of the festival varies every year, but main events are held on the first Sunday in April, and the festival has been held since 1977.
The legend that stands behind the origins of the festival says that there was a sharp-toothed demon inside a young woman’s vagina, which castrated two young men when they had their wedding nights with the woman. The woman then asked a blacksmith for help, and he created an iron phallus which broke the demon’s teeth.
The central location of the festival is a local penis-venerating shrine, which is said to protect married couples and give them prosperity, harmony and easy delivery. It is also popular among prostitutes, who pray to be protected from sexually transmitted diseases. Aside from the phallic shrine, at the festival it is possible to find illustrations, candy, figurines, carved vegetables and decorations – all shaped as the central symbol of the festival.
Kanamara Matsuri was a small, local festival in the beginning, but as time went by, it became bigger and more popular. Today it is visited not only by the locals, but also by many tourists, and it is used as a fundraising activity for HIV research.
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