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Worshippers perform a purification ritual in the sea during Futami Okitama Shrine’s summer solstice festival in Ise, Mie Prefecture, on Wednesday. About 160 people participated in the early-morning ceremony, which is held on the summer solstice when the sun rises between two rocks that represent a married couple in local lore. Onlookers at the shrine cheered and took photos as worshippers immersed themselves in the sea. “The sun appeared as I was praying. I felt refreshed,” said Katsumasa Sakai, 59, from Iruma, Saitama Prefecture.
