Naha Great Tug-of-War Festival Guinness World Record (The Epic 40-Ton Giant Straw Rope Battle of Okinawa)

Officially certified by Guinness World Records as the *"World’s Largest and Heaviest Natural Rice Straw Rope"*, the **Naha Great Tug-of-War** (*Naha Ootsunahiki*) is the most titanic, inclusive, and visually astonishing folk extravaganza in the Ryukyu archipelago, gathering over 270.000 international participants and spectators every October. Tracing its lineage back to the 17th century during the golden maritime trading era of the Ryukyu Kingdom, this monumental civic contest is staged to pray for bountiful harvests, timely seasonal rains, oceanic maritime prosperity, and universal peace for people of all nations. The sheer physical magnitude of the sacred straw serpent defies comprehension: stretching an extraordinary **200 meters in total length**, measuring **1.56 meters in diameter**, and weighing an astonishing **40 metric tons**! Hand-braided from hundreds of thousands of bundles of local rice straw, the behemoth rope is split into two halves: the **Male Rope** (*Me-tsuna*) representing the West and the **Female Rope** (*U-tsuna*) representing the East. In the middle of National Route 58, which is completely closed to vehicular traffic, the massive looping eyes of both ropes are coupled together by sliding in a titanic wooden locking pin weighing several hundred kilograms known as the **Kanuchee-bo**, mythologically symbolizing the cosmic union of yin and yang to ignite fertility and global harmony. Once the signal gong echoes and master martial-arts banners (*Hata-gashira*) surge into the sky, the planetary battle commences. Over 15,000 active pullers gripping hundreds of smaller sub-ropes (*Te-tsuna*) strain every muscle in unison for thirty grueling minutes, encouraged by drumming taiko, martial karate demonstrations atop the rope, and roaring cheers of encouragement. In the true egalitarian spirit of Okinawa, any traveler from anywhere in the world can step directly onto the asphalt, grip a sub-rope, and pull with all their might! When victory is decided, participants joyfully snip off personal strands of the sacred straw rope with scissors to take home as powerful talismans of health, domestic safety (*Kanei Anzen*), and good fortune for the coming year.