Case file · Apparition / miracle
Okage-mairi: the Ise pilgrimage frenzy of 1830
In 1830 roughly five million people, many leaving work and home without permission, set out for the Ise shrines after rumours that sacred amulets had fallen from the sky.
1830 CE · 34.45, 136.72 · status: disputed
The account
Mass pilgrimages to Ise broke out about every sixty years (1650, 1705, 1771, 1830). Each began with stories of ofuda talismans raining down, and roadside people fed and lodged the pilgrims for free.
The sceptical view
Historians see social release and rumour at work, and some amulets were likely scattered by people; the 'falling' talismans were never shown to be anything else.