Sechie - Sechie

Banquets held at the Imperial Court on festival days and on days when official events were held. The Ryō no Gige miscellaneous orders state that "The first, seventh, and sixteenth days of the first month, March 3, May 5, July 7, and the Daijō day in November are all designated as festival days," and these are designated as festival days. On these days, the Emperor appears and a banquet is held. The Engishiki states that "New Year's Day (Chōga, Gōnichi-sechie) and the enthronement ceremony are the major ceremonies, the New Year's Day banquet, the seventh day, and the Niiname-no-e are the middle ceremonies, and the Toka-no-sechie and September 9th (Choyo-no-sechie) are the minor ceremonies," and also stipulates that ministers attending major ceremonies should wear formal attire. The five seasonal festivals (gosekku) established by the Edo Shogunate were Jinjitsu (January 7th), Joshi (March 3rd), Tango (May 5th), Tanabata (July 7th), and Choyo (September 9th), and were likely created by incorporating the seasonal festivals of ancient and medieval times and folk customs. Among the folk, there were also cases where March 3rd, May 5th, and August 1st were designated as the three seasonal festivals, and many other seasonal festival days were later born. Originally, the offerings made at seasonal festivals were called sekku, but the seasonal festival days themselves are also called sekku.

[Yutaka Yamanaka]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

節の日および規定の公事(くじ)がある日、朝廷で行われた宴会のこと。『令義解(りょうのぎげ)』雑令に「正月一日、七日、一六日、三月三日、五月五日、七月七日、一一月大嘗(だいじょう)日を皆節日と為(なす)」とあり、これらを節の日と定めている。この日天皇が出御し、饗宴(きょうえん)がある。「元日（朝賀、元日節会）、即位の儀を大儀とし、元日宴会、七日、新嘗会(にいなめのえ)を中儀とし、踏歌節会(とうかのせちえ)、九月九日（重陽節会(ちょうようのせちえ)）などを小儀とする」と『延喜式(えんぎしき)』にあって、大儀に参会する群臣は礼服を着るべき規定も書かれている。江戸幕府の定めた五節供(ごせっく)は、人日(じんじつ)（正月7日）、上巳(じょうし)（3月3日）、端午(たんご)（5月5日）、七夕(たなばた)（7月7日）、重陽（9月9日）の5日であり、これは古代・中世の節会と、民間の風習を取り入れてつくられたものであろう。民間では3月3日、5月5日、8月1日を三節供とする例もあり、のちに多くの節会の日が生まれてくる。元来、節会の供物(くもつ)が節供であるが、節日そのものを節供ともいう。

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