Photo= A couple in traditional Heian costumes set small, round boats carrying dolls on the Mitarashi River (March 3, Shimogamo Shrine, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto)

On March 3, the day of the seasonal peach festival, the "Kyo no Nagashi-bina" ceremony, in which people set dolls made of Japanese paper afloat on a stream and pray for girls' healthy growth, was held at Shimogamo Shrine in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto. A couple in traditional Heian costumes and other people gently released small straw boats carrying dolls on the Mitarashi River within the shrine precincts.

Hina Matsuri is considered to be a custom that originated from people floating dolls on rivers or seas as substitutes for children to pray their healthy growth. Kyo-ningyo Commerce-and-Industry Cooperative holds this ceremony annually with the aim of passing down such traditional culture.

As many worshippers watched, Takuma Son and his wife, wearing traditional formal court costume and "Juni-hitoe," or traditional multi-layer court costume respectively, who run a restaurant in Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto, and kindergartners set dolls on the river's surface. Son said with a smile, "We have been married for one year. I had precious experience with my wife."