WHO ARE WE?

We are Kashiwa-ren, a non-profit group dedicated to promoting Japanese summer festival culture in Berlin thorugh organising events such as the Bon Odori (traditional japanese summer festive dances) and, most prominently, parading a Mikoshi (a mobile traditional shrine) through the streets during the main parade of Berlin's Karneval Der Kulturen.

Our aim is to expand the Japanese Festival culture, and strengthen the bonds between the Japanese and German communities in our city.

After the halt during the pandemic years, we succeded bringing the Mikoshi back on the Karneval der Kulturen 2025 edition. And while we can't be grateful enough to all the people who made it possible, we want to keep bringing this bit of Japan's life to Berlin. And as such, we ask for your help once more!

WHAT IS A "MIKOSHI"?

The Mikoshi is a portable Shinto shrine that is paraded through the streets in many local festivities across all of Japan, on the shoulders of large groups of people.

In Japan, Mikoshi carrying is a celebration of community. Neighbourhood groups, sports associations, folk groups, youth clubs and other local entities come together to carry the shrine through their boroughs to bring luck and prosperity, often visiting local shops to wish for prosperity and the elderly or sick for good health. While its remote roots might be religious, carrying a Mikoshi is all celebration of your local community and its people.

In this spirit, we want to promote community and diversity, by inviting all interested to take part in this celebration and work and enjoy as a group, as well as bringing a unique experience to the celebration that is the Karneval, one rarely seen outside its home country.

We have been bringing the Mikoshi to Berlin since 2016, and each year we have managed to bring together people from across Europe to celebrate culture and community with us. And now, we ask for your help to keep doing so!

WHY DO WE NEED YOUR HELP?

The process of bringing the Mikoshi entails certain costs, such as:

We have set our estimate goal based on our experiences in past years. All donations will go straight and in full to either covering the costs for the year, or towards a fund to cover the costs for next year.