A is a sacred religious
palanquin
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the el ...
(also translated as portable
Shinto shrine
A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion.
Overview
Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings.
The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...
).
Shinto
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...
followers believe that it serves as the vehicle to transport a deity in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
while moving between main shrine and temporary shrine during a festival or when moving to a new shrine. Often, the ''mikoshi'' resembles a miniature building, with pillars, walls, a roof, a
veranda
A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure.
Although the form ''veran ...
and a railing.
Often the
Japanese honorific
The Japanese language makes use of a system of honorific speech, called , which includes honorific suffixes and prefixes when referring to others in a conversation. Suffixes are often gender-specific at the end of names, while prefixes are att ...
prefix is added, making .
Traditional rituals of East Asia
Shapes
Typical shapes are rectangles, hexagons, and octagons. The body, which stands on two or four poles (for carrying), is usually lavishly decorated, and the roof might hold a carving of a
phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
.
Festival and flow
During a ''
matsuri
Japanese festivals are traditional festive occasions often celebrated with dance and music in Japan. Many festivals have their roots in Traditional Chinese holidays, traditional Chinese festivals, but have undergone extensive changes over time ...
'' (Japanese festival) involving a ''mikoshi'', people bear the ''mikoshi'' on their shoulders by means of two, four (or sometimes, rarely, six) poles. They bring the ''mikoshi'' from the shrine, carry it around the neighborhoods that worship at the shrine, and in many cases leave it in a designated area, resting on blocks called ''uma'' (horse), for a time before returning it to the shrine. Some shrines have the custom of dipping the ''mikoshi'' in the water of a nearby lake, river or ocean (this practice is called ''o-hamaori''). At some festivals, the people who bear the ''mikoshi'' wave it wildly from side to side to "amuse" the deity (
kami
are the deities, divinities, spirits, phenomena or "holy powers", that are venerated in the Shinto religion. They can be elements of the landscape, forces of nature, or beings and the qualities that these beings express; they can also be the sp ...
) inside.
Methods of shouldering
The most common method of shouldering in Japan is . Bearers chant and may or may not toss and shake the mikoshi.
Other methods include:
* is one famous way of shouldering observable at the
Asakusa Sanja Festival. The shout is "say ya, soi ya, sah, sorya... etc". The mikoshi is swayed rapidly, up and down and a little to the right and left.
* "Dokkoi , ドッコイ " is seen in
Shonan in
Kanagawa
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...
Prefecture. This shouldering style usually uses two poles. The mikoshi is moved up and down rhythmically, and more slowly than in the "Edomae style". One shout is "dokkoi dokkoi dokkoi sorya" and there is a song called a "Jink , lively song."
* Another one is "Odawara style , 小田原担ぎ " observed in
Odawara
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,482 and a population density of 1,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is .
Geography
Odawara lies in the Ashigara Plains, in the far western por ...
(next to the
Hakone
is a town in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the town had a population of 11,293 and a population density of 122 persons per km². The total area of the town is . The town is a popular tourist destination due to its many hot springs and views of ...
). This is a peculiar way of shouldering in which multiple mikoshis meet and run (Holy Dash). The shout is "oisah;korasah/koryasah." and there is a song called a "Kiyari", a chant traditionally sung by workmen while pulling a heavy load and also by firemen.
The bearers do not sway the mikoshi.
* In this "united" style, the mikoshi uses the full width of the road, moving from side to side and turning corners at full speed.
See also
*
Glossary of Shinto
This is the glossary of Shinto, including major terms on the subject. Words followed by an asterisk (*) are illustrated by an image in one of the photo galleries.
__NOTOC__
A
* – A red papier-mâché cow bobblehead toy; a kind of ''engimo ...
*
Honden
In Shinto shrine architecture, the , also called , or sometimes as in Ise Shrine's case, is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined ''kami'', usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a sta ...
*
Matsuri Float
References
* Sokyo Ono, William P. Woodward, Shinto - The Kami Way, Charles E. Tuttle Company, Tokyo 1992,
Basic Terms of Shinto Kokugakuin University, Institute for Japanese Culture and Classics, Tokyo 1985
External links
(English version)
Shin'yo, in the Encyclopedia of Shinto by the Kokugakuin University
{{Authority control
Festivals in Japan
Japanese folk art
Shinto shrines
Articles containing video clips
Shinto religious objects