The Two Roles of Aso Shrine Preventing eruptions and ushering in good harvests 阿蘇神社の二つの役割 噴火を防ぎ豊穣をもたらす

Official explanation

The rites and festivals performed at Aso Shrine serve two distinct functions: first, to prevent eruption of the volcano, and second, to ensure bountiful rice harvests.

The two roles are interconnected, since the smoke and ash from even a small eruption could damage crops, livestock, and dwellings over a considerable distance. And since volcanic eruptions often last for months at a time, the cumulative damage can be very serious.

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The annual harvest comes around with much greater regularity than volcanic eruptions, so the shrine conducts many more rites and festivals related to growing rice than to calming the crater.

出典: 地域観光資源の多言語解説文データベース（観光庁） — www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db. この英語解説文は観光庁の地域観光資源の多言語解説整備支援事業で作成しました。
Source: Japan Tourism Agency, Multilingual Explanation Database. This English text was produced by the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual explanation project and is shown unedited. Opening hours and services may have changed since it was written.