Shimogamo-jinja Shrine is the most historic power spot in Kyoto and is also known as one of the settings of the Tale of Genji. In the Heian period (794-1185), aristocrats performed misogi (purification purification) at the change of seasons, and it is said that by dipping one's feet in the Mitarashi Pond on the day of the Ox of Doyo, sins and impurities would be purged. This custom spread to the common people and became the form of today's Mitarashi Festival. Every year around the day of the Ox, a ritual of foot dipping is held to pray for good health by dipping the feet up to the knees in the spring water of the Mitarashi Pond on the shrine's premises.