Suburban Festival - Kousai (English)

Japanese: 郊祭 - こうさい（英語表記）jiāo jì

In ancient China, this refers to a ritual in which the emperor worshipped heaven or earth in the suburbs of the national capital. It is often called a "suburban ritual." Worship of heaven and earth appears to have been practiced since ancient times, as it is found in various texts such as the Book of Rites and the Zhou Lies, but the details of its origin are unknown. When Confucianism became the state religion in the Han dynasty, this ritual was also made into a liturgy, and since then, worship of heaven and earth became the sole prerogative of the emperor. Among these, the secret rituals of Fengshan, performed in sacred mountains such as Mount Tai, were considered the most important.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中国古代において，皇帝がその国都の郊外で天または地をまつった祭祀をいう。〈郊祀〉ということが多い。天地をまつることは，《礼記（らいき）》《周礼（しゆらい）》などの経書に散見されて，古くから行われていたようであるが，その起源の詳細については不明。漢代に入って儒教が国教化されるとともに，この祭祀も典礼化され，以来，天地をまつることは，皇帝の専権となった。そのなかでも，泰山などの霊岳において行われる封禅の秘儀は，最も重大なものと考えられた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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