Ennichi - Ennichi

It refers to the day when the gods and Buddhas have a connection with this world, such as the day of their birth, appearance, or the foundation of a shrine. Ennichi has been around since the Heian period, and in the Konjaku Monogatarishu it is written, "Today is the 18th, the festival day of Kannon," while in the 20th volume of the Kokonchomonju it is written, "The 15th and 18th are the festival days of Amida and Kannon." It is based on the belief that each god and Buddha will appear on a specific day and save the pilgrims on that day. In many cases, temples open their secret principal image and precinct Buddhas to the public for just one day, giving all living beings the opportunity to make a connection with them. There is also a theory that the word Ennichi is a corrupted version of Enichi, meaning that it was originally the day of a customary Buddhist festival. Originally held once a year, it became a monthly event as the number of pilgrims increased, and some festivals, such as Kishimojin, were held on the 8th, 18th, or 28th of each month. There are also festivals based on auspicious legends, those that coincide with auspicious days, and those that do not simply indicate the days by numbers based on the Chinese zodiac. Thus, the festivals were various, with Yakushi on the 8th, Konpira on the 10th, Kokuzo on the 13th, Enma on the 16th, Kannon on the 18th, Kobo Daishi on the 21st, Jizo and Atago on the 24th, Tenmangu on the 25th, and Fudo on the 2nd, 7th, and 28th, and in addition, Daikoku was worshiped on the day of the Rat, Bishamon on the day of the Tiger, Benten on the day of the Snake, and Inari on the day of the Horse. It was said that "Kannon in the morning, Yakushi in the evening," and on each of these festival days, there were flocks of common people to visit the most popular gods and Buddhas, but in addition to simply visiting on those days, believers also held meetings on the 24th of each month, like the Jizo-ko. Some people consider this to be the older form of festival days. In the Kansai region, the night before is called Ennichi, but in the Kanto region, it usually refers to the day itself. Since the early modern period, Ennichi has also become a day of recreation, with markets set up, show booths lined up, and night stalls, and it has become a popular day for people.

[Hidezaburo Hagiwara]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

神仏の降誕日、示現日、あるいは社堂創建といった、神仏のこの世との有縁(うえん)の日をいう。縁日はすでに平安時代よりあり、『今昔物語集』に「今日は十八日、観音(かんのん)の御縁日也(なり)」とあり、『古今著聞集(ここんちょもんじゅう)』20巻には「十五日、十八日ハ阿弥陀(あみだ)、観音ノ縁日」とある。それぞれの神仏が特定の日に示現してこの日の参詣(さんけい)者を救ってくれるという御利益(ごりやく)信仰によっている。寺院が秘仏とする本尊や境内(けいだい)仏を公開して、衆生(しゅじょう)に結縁(けちえん)の機会を与える開帳を、この日1日だけする場合も多い。縁日は会日(えにち)の訛(なま)り、つまり恒例的に催される仏会(ぶつえ)の日が本来であったとする説もある。もとは年1回であったものが、参詣人の増加につれて月ごととなり、さらに鬼子母神(きしもじん)のように8、18、28日となったものもある。縁日には縁起伝説によるものや、さらに忌み日をあてたもの、単に十二支によって数で日を示さないものなどがある。かくて、8日の薬師、10日の金毘羅(こんぴら)、13日の虚空蔵(こくうぞう)、16日の閻魔(えんま)、18日の観音、21日の弘法(こうぼう)大師、24日の地蔵、愛宕(あたご)、25日の天満宮、不動は2、7、28日などと雑多になり、加えて甲子(きのえね)の日は大黒、寅(とら)の日は毘沙門(びしゃもん)、巳(み)の日は弁天、午(うま)の日は稲荷(いなり)とされた。「朝に観音、夕に薬師」などといわれ、これらの縁日ごとに人気の高い神仏へ庶民の群参があったが、単にその日に参詣するだけでなく、地蔵講のように信徒が毎月24日に講を開く形もあった。むしろこのほうが縁日のあり方としては古いとみる考え方もある。関西ではその前夜を縁日とよぶ習いがあるが、関東では普通その当日をいう。縁日は近世以来、レクリエーションの日ともなり、市(いち)が立ち、見せ物小屋が並び、夜店も出て、人々に親しまれた。

［萩原秀三郎］

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