Matsunouchi - Matsunouchi

This is the period when Kadomatsu (New Year's decorations) are erected. Since Kadomatsu are the abode of the New Year's deity, this is the period during which the deity stays in each house, and it is New Year in the narrow sense. The date for removing Kadomatsu varies from place to place, and therefore the period of Matsunouchi is not fixed. Usually, it is from New Year's Day to the 7th of the New Year, but in some regions, the Nanakusa period is extended to the 8th, including the New Year's Day, and in other cases, it is extended to the 6th. In Kyoto and Osaka, it is extended to the 15th, but this is probably because the young trees of the New Year's Day faded early, and it was considered to be a continuous period from the New Year's Day. The "Tondo" ceremony, in which pine decorations are burned, is held around the 7th and 15th. After removing the Kadomatsu, the tip of the Kadomatsu is cut off and stuck into the hole in the stake that the Kadomatsu was set up in, and in many cases, this is called the coming-of-age ceremony of the Kadomatsu.

[Shoji Inoguchi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

正月の門松(かどまつ)の立っている期間。門松は、年神の依代(よりしろ)であるから、年神が家々に滞在する期間であり、狭い意味での正月である。門松を取り払う日は各地各様で、したがって松の内も一定しない。普通、元日から七日正月までをいうが、七草(ななくさ)を大(おお)正月に含めて8日までとする地方があり、逆に6日までとする例もある。京都や大阪では15日までであるが、小(こ)正月の若木迎えが早く薄れたために、大正月から一連のものと考えたためであろう。松飾りを焼く「とんど」も、7日前後と15日前後にある。門松を取り払ったあと、門松の先を切って門松を立てていた杭(くい)の穴に刺し、門松の元服などとよんでいる例が多い。

［井之口章次］

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