Ainame Festival

In ancient times, this was a festival on the day of the rabbit in the first month of November when the emperor offered new grains to the gods. It is also called "Ainie Matsuri" or "Ainbe Matsuri." It is thought to be an abbreviation of Ainiiname, and is interpreted as meaning that new grains are offered to the gods and the emperor holds a feast with them, but it could also be said that it is more in line with the original meaning of the festival as a joint Niiname festival for all gods. Ainiiname has characteristics in common with the Kanname Festival at Ise Shrine that preceded it and the Niiname Festival held on the day of the rabbit in the last month of November, and is a festival held with the purpose of offering rewards to the gods. The first recorded instance of this is in the "Nihon Shoki" in the entry for the 3rd day of October in the 5th year of Emperor Tenmu's reign (676), which reads, "Offerings were made to the various deities who received Niiname." The number of deities who received Niiname increased over time, and in the Heian period, the "Engishiki" records that offerings were made to 71 deities in the five provinces of Yamashiro, Yamato, Kawachi, Settsu, and Kii. However, as the four festivals of Toshigoi, Niiname, and Tsukinami (held twice a year) came to be known as the Four Shiko Festivals and a system of important national rituals was established, the Shiko Festival gradually declined and was later limited to a few shrines such as Kamo no Saiin.

[Masaji Kurabayashi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

上代、11月上(かみ)の卯(う)の日に天皇が諸神に新穀を供した祭り。「あいにえまつり」「あいんべまつり」ともいう。相新嘗(あいにいなめ)の略語とみられ、神に新穀をさしあげ、天皇が神とともに饗宴(きょうえん)を行う意と解されるが、あるいは諸神合同の新嘗の祭りと考えるほうが原義にかなうともいえる。相嘗は、これに先だつ伊勢(いせ)神宮の神嘗(かんなめ)祭や11月下(しも)の卯の日の新嘗祭と共通する性格をもち、諸神に対する報賽(ほうさい)の目的をもって行われた祭りである。記録上では『日本書紀』天武(てんむ)天皇5年（676）10月丁酉(ひのととりのひ)（3日）の条に「祭幣帛於相新嘗諸神祇」とあるのが初見。相嘗にあずかる神は時代を追って増加し、平安時代には山城(やましろ)、大和(やまと)、河内(かわち)、摂津、紀伊の5か国の71座の神々に奉幣(ほうへい)が行われたことが『延喜式(えんぎしき)』にみえる。しかし、やがて祈年(としごい)、新嘗、月次(つきなみ)（年2回）の四つの祭を四箇祭(しこのまつり)と称し、国の大事とする祭祀(さいし)体制が確立されるようになると、この相嘗祭はしだいに衰微するに至り、のちには賀茂(かも)の斎院(さいいん)などの数社に限られるようになった。

［倉林正次］

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