Hou Tu Temple (English: hòu tǔ cí)

Japanese: 后土祠 - こうどし（英語表記）hòu tǔ cí

In China, this refers to a shrine that worships the earth. Hou Tu is the opposite of Huang Tian, and is also called Chigi or Huang Chigi. The festivals for heaven and earth (suburban festivals) and the festivals for ancestors (ancestral temples) were the most important national rituals in the old China. The festivals for Hou Tu have been held since ancient times, but they were absent for a long time, so Emperor Wu of Han built the Hou Tu Shrine in Fenyin, Shanxi Province, and revived them. Since then, although there are differences in the location and rituals, they have been performed by successive emperors.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中国で大地をまつるやしろをいう。后土は皇天に対する語で，地祇（ちぎ），皇地祇ともいう。天と地のまつり(郊祀（こうし）)と祖先のまつり(宗廟（そうびよう）)とは旧体制の中国において最重要の国家祭祀であった。后土のまつりも古代から行われたが，長らく欠けたままになっていたので，漢の武帝は山西省の汾陰（ふんいん）に后土祠を建てて復活させた。これ以後，場所や祭祀儀礼に異同はあるものの，歴代の皇帝によって執行されるようになった。

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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