Pop Japan

The half-naked men gather in Sugoisobe Shrine to split bamboos by smashing, not because they are mad, but this is their ritual for good harvest and draw-off bad luck and disasters. Some splits are took home and kept as charms to ward-off diseases and disasters. After the smashing, a thick straw rope was carried around the shrine and thrown back to the river to get rid of bad luck. It's also called Gogan Shinji.