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Our website has been renewed. [August. 28, 2014]
Festival
Doburoku Matsuri Festival

14th - 19th Oct.
People pray to the mountain god for safety and a good harvest and offer doburoku(unrefined sake) to the shrine to express their gratitude. While private alcoholic beverage production is banned in Japan, people in Shirakawa are given special permission to produce doburoku for a limited quantity for this festival. Doburoku looks like rice porridge. It is thick and slightly sweet. Doburoku first offered to the shrine later entertains people gathered in the precincts. People there dance, perform niwaka(improvised buffoonery), sing songs and so on. The Doburoku Matsuri Festival is the biggest among the festivities for the villagers.
Festival day for each shrine
| District | Shrine | Festival day |
| Ogimachi | Shirakawa Hachiman Shrine | 14th - 15th Oct. |
| Hatogaya | Hatogaya Hachiman Shrine | 16th - 17th Oct. |
| Iijima | Iijima Hachiman Shrine | 18th - 19th Oct. |
| Kitani | Kitani Hakusan Shrine | 10th Oct. |
| Hirase | Hirase Hachiman Shrine | 25th - 26th Sep. |
Schedule for the festival
| Schedule (begining time) | Contents | Notes |
| 9:00- | festival | Shinto rites Ceremony at a shrine |
| 9:00- | going round the town | Parade |
| 15:00-16:00 | dedicating Shishimai | Precincts of a shrine |
| 15:00-16:00 | blessing with Doburoku | Precincts of a shrine |
| 15:00-16:00 | dedicating the folk songs | "Hougei-den" at a shrine |
| 19:00- | dedicating Shishimai | Precincts of a shrine |
| 21:00- | dedicating public entertainment | "Hougei-den" at a shrine |
For more details, please make inquires at shrine.
Entertainment
Shishimai (Lion dance) an important intangible cultural asset designated by Gifu Prefecture.

Shishimai (Lion dance), a living dance, has been cultivated by a long history and is highly evaluated as one of the highlights of entertainment for Shirakawa-go. During the Doburoku Festival, spectators been totally absorbed in a world of tradition.
Presently, 7 organizations keep the tradition alive.The large"Mukade Shishi"(Lion like a centipede) is given life when 4 dancers get under one cloth and dance with 8 legs.
Another interesting lion dance tells us of a legend of 2 boys winning a battle against a lion, using a Japanese sword and halberd.
Folk songs in Shirakawa-go

A long time ago when traffic was held up by snow, singing and dancing accompanied by the shamisen (a traditional Japanese three-stringed banjo-like instrumental) were their only comfort.
The people in Shirakawa-go lived in such harsh winters for hundreds of years, and so many folk songs were composed and handed down.
"Kodaijin" "Wajima" and "Shossho" etc. are very unique in this village, and they are always sung and danced when people have happy events, for example a wedding reception, the erection of the frame of a house, restoration of a thatched roof and so on.
"Kodaijin" (an important intangible cultural asset) has especially became famous for its unique words, melody, and dance.
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