Atago Shrine has been worshiped since ancient times as the god of fire. It is said that the Atago Shrine in Ikeda was founded a long time ago when people gathered at the sight of a fire lit at the top of Mt. Satsuki and said, ``Atago-san has come to Ikeda!'' At that time, people's houses were made of wood and had almost no fire protection equipment, so a fire could be a catastrophe. People believed that the god of fire would protect them from the disasters of fire. The Gangara Fire Festival, held on August 24th every year, is a historic festival that has been going on since the Edo period. Young people carry two large torches weighing 100 kg and light them at the ``Daichi'' and ``Dai'' characters on the mountainside as they descend the mountain. Afterwards, torches are arranged in the shape of ``people'' and paraded through the town. It has been designated as an Osaka Prefecture Intangible Cultural Property. *The photo is from the Gangara Fire Festival.