Photo= New adults dressed in their best shoot arrows toward targets in Sanjusangen-do Hall (January 12, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto)

The annual New Year ritual "Toshiya," or a Japanese archery event, where young people who have just reached adulthood pledge to improve their skills, took place on January 12 at Sanjusangen-do Hall in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto. Approximately 1,600 men and women dressed up gorgeously shot their arrows with fresh spirits.

Toshiya is said to have originated from an event in the Edo Period, where samurai warriors competed to display their archery technique under the 120-meter eaves of Sanjusangen-do Hall. After World War II, the competition sponsored by the Kyoto Prefecture Archery Federation and others has been held as "Sanjusangen-do O-mato Zenkoku Taikai," or national archery competition at Sanjusangen-do Hall. This year marks the 64th competition.

Women in gorgeous long-sleeved kimono aimed at the targets set 60 meters away from the shooting range of the chilly precincts. Visitors took photos amid the silence as young people concentrated on their fingertips, which had grown numb from the cold, and shot their arrows toward the targets.

A sophomore at Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts from Matsubara City, Osaka Prefecture, voiced her aspirations, saying, "I would like to reflect on myself as in Japanese archery and become an autonomous, responsible woman."