In Shimofukuzawa, Japan, the local men's youth association organizes the annual Dosojin deity festival. The festivities are characterized by paper decorations and pantomime, with sexualized symbols promoting marriage and fertility. Young men of the village play the roles of the seven lucky gods, traditional protectors embodying such blessings as health, prosperity, long life, wealth, respect for Buddhist law, and generosity. Those who have left the village to work in urban areas return every January to take part in the ritual, held for the benefit of newlyweds and for the purification of 42-year-old men, who are thought to be in especial danger from evil spirits.