Starting with Trees

The 24^th February issue of Jinja Shinpō had two front-page articles about the Shikinen Sengū at Isë Jingū, both closely connected with trees.

The first announced the determination of the dates for the first two matsuri of the Shikinen Sengū. There are 33 matsuri (on the official count) involved in the Shikinen Sengū, and they take place over the course of eight years. This is why the Shikinen Sengū is not referred to by a year, but by a number — this one is the 63^rd. (For accessibility, I am tagging these posts with the anticipated date of the climax, but that could change. The preparations for the 59^th Shikinen Sengū began in 1941, but the climax was postponed until 1953 because, well, things happened.)

For certain key matsuri, the dates and times are decided by the Tennō, and the dates and times for the other matsuri are decided by Jingū based on these dates. In practice, of course, the Tennō follows tradition, and the advice from Jingū on what that tradition is, but because the dates are only formally set a few months in advance, the intervals between matsuri, and even the time of year for a matsuri, can be changed if necessary. “Necessary” is very strong: Word War II and the Occupation did delay the matsuri, but the Great East Japan Earthquake did not.

The first two matsuri are the Yamaguchisai and the Konomotosai. “Sai” is “matsuri” — this is just another reading of the same character. “Yamaguchi” means “entrance to the mountains”, while “Konomoto” means “base of the tree”. These matsuri are concerned with the procurement of timber for the rebuilding, but they are performed at Jingū rather than at the forests where the timber will be harvested. Of course, originally these were the same place, and in another century they should be again, but for a thousand years they have been separate. Both matsuri are performed at both the Inner and Outer Sanctuaries. The Yamaguchisai will be performed at the Inner Sanctuary at 8am on May 2^nd, and at the Outer Sanctuary at noon, while the Konomotosai will be performed at the Inner Sanctuary at 8pm on the same day, and at the Outer Sanctuary at midnight.

I will write about their content when they are actually performed (coming soon!), but there is one thing I want to point out now. For the regular annual matsuri at Jingū, they are almost all performed first at the Outer Sanctuary, and then at the Inner. (There are exceptions that are only performed at one or the other.) However, the matsuri associated with the Shikinen Sengū are performed first at the Inner Sanctuary. This is because the two sanctuaries originally had their Shikinen Sengū in different years, and the Inner Sanctuary was a couple of years earlier. They have been performed in the same year since the late sixteenth century, but the order has been preserved.

Another two matsuri (or events) have had their dates fixed based on this, the Misomahajimësai and the Urakisogoyōzaibassaishiki, which will be held in early June. These are also concerned with the safe harvesting of the timber, and again, I will write about their content when they happen.

The second article was about the establishment of the organisations that will manage the “Okihiki Gyōji” — “Honourable Tree Pulling Events”. These are events in which people pull honourable trees. Slightly more specifically, they are events in which large tree trunks that will be used in the rebuilding of Jingū are drawn, by hand, through Isë to the places where they are needed. Most of the participants are local residents, but there are also provisions for people from elsewhere in the country to help. These events are not matsuri in themselves, and thus not included in that “33”, but they are very important, because lots of ordinary people get to participate. The article reports the mayor of Isë City, who is the chairman of the organisation, saying that these events are important for the vitality of the area. Given the number of participants, and the broad base of participation, these events need careful planning. The actual events will take place next year and the year after; if possible, I would like to participate.

In a couple of months, the 63^rd Shikinen Sengū will finally begin.