Shimotsuki Festival

Japanese: 霜月祭 - しもつきまつり

A festival held in November (Shimotsuki) of the lunar calendar. It is held at the winter solstice, when the sun's power is waning, and its main purpose is to regenerate life force. A typical example is Shimotsuki Kagura, which is held in various places. It is widely distributed, such as "Shimotsuki Kagura of Horowasan" at Haushiwake Shrine in Akita Prefecture, and is also held in the Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu regions at this time of year. Among them, the area around the border of Aichi, Nagano, and Shizuoka prefectures, called the Sanshin-en region after the old name of the prefecture, has particularly many Shimotsuki Kagura, such as the Toyama Shimotsuki Festival and the Oku-Mikawa Flower Festival. In Mukata, Tenryu Village, Nagano Prefecture, large-scale purification festivals are held when major events occur in the world, and rituals are held to purify sick children and those who have been on the verge of death and are reborn as "kamiko" or "born children."

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

Japanese:

旧暦 11月（霜月）に行なわれる祭り。太陽の力が衰える冬至の季節にあたって行なわれ，生命力の再生を主眼とする。典型的なものに，各地で行なわれる霜月神楽がある。その分布は広く，秋田県の波宇志別神社（はうしわけじんじゃ）の「保呂羽山（ほろわさん）の霜月神楽」をはじめ，中国地方や四国地方，九州地方でもこの時期に多く行なわれている。そのなかでも旧国名から三信遠地域と呼ばれる愛知県，長野県，静岡県の県境付近一帯には，遠山の霜月祭や奥三河の花祭など，特に多くの霜月神楽が行なわれている。長野県天龍村向方（むかがた）などのように，世のなかに大きな出来事があったときなどに大規模なお清（潔）め祭りを行なったり，病弱な子供や生死の境をさまよった者が「神子」または「生まれっ子」として生まれ清まる儀式を行なう例もある。

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