Quote:
Originally Posted by Dhomochevsky
Because they are carrying it into the sea, as the picture descripton clearly states.
You don't jump into the water with your clothes on, right?
Another thing: this seems to be a Yakuza festivity? Or whats with all the tattooed guys?
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matsuri is an non-ordinary day where social rules and hierarchy are allowed to be disregarded to a certain extent.
This is why the yakuza who are meant to keep a low profile and keep their tattoos hidden, are allowed to flaunt it in public.
Other groups of people such as the prostitues and other women in the entertainment industry who are meant to be in the underground take part in the matsuri too.
Cross dressing is also a big part of the matsuri in some areas.
On a different angle though, Yakuza and shinto are more closer than it is Yakuza and Buddhism.
In part, this can seem this way because the right wing activists believe the emperor should be ruling Japan = emperor as god is the teaching of Shintoism= right wing activists are often members of the Yakuza= Yakuza is shinto.
Or, it is because the Yakuza culture is deeply connected with the Shintoist rituals, such as exchanging of sake cups for loyalty. If your "Kumi/family" is Shinto, then members will start observing religion too.
And maybe because they are superstitious since they are reliant on themselves and not police etc due to the nature of their business (crimes, gambling etc) and praying to the Shinto shelf in the morning and before important events becomes a important part of their lives.
However, in reality religion is free as a yakusa, its just that shinto has many public occasions that grab attention.