Bear Festival - Kuma Matsuri

Japanese: 熊祭 - くままつり

A religious ceremony in which a bear is killed. It is widely practiced among the northern peoples. In Japan, it is also performed in mountain villages north of central Honshu, but the Ainu people are famous for this event, which they have held in winter from January to February. In the Ainu language, it is called Iyomante (bear sending) or Kamuyyomante (bear god sending). In a broad sense, it includes informal festivals for mother bears captured in the mountains, but it usually refers to a festival in which a baby bear kept in a home is killed and its spirit is sent back to its parents in the "country of the gods," which is said to be located in a sacred mountain that is the source of water. The original meaning of the festival is to raise and entertain the baby bear god, who comes to humans from the country of the gods as a guest god with meat and fur, for one or two winters, and then send it back with gifts such as offerings (nusa), rice cakes with dried salmon, and a message of farewell.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

熊を殺して行う宗教儀礼。北方諸民族の間で広く行われる。日本では本州中部以北の山村のまたぎの間でも行われるが，アイヌ民族が冬期1～2月頃行なってきた行事が名高い。アイヌ語ではイヨマンテ (熊送り) もしくはカムイヨマンテ (熊神送り) という。広義には山で捕獲した親熊の略式な祭りも含むが，普通は家々で飼育した子熊を殺し，その霊を水源の霊山にあるという「神の国」の父母のもとに送り帰す祭りをいう。神の国から人間のもとへ肉や毛皮をもって客神として訪れる子熊神を一冬か二冬養育し，歓待したあと，幣 (ぬさ) ，しとぎ餅，干しざけなどをみやげとし,送詞を述べて送り返すのが祭りの本義である。

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