Fire, Prayer, and Purification: Early Winter Events and Folk Beliefs in Kyoto
Kyoto is home to a number of unique year-end festivals. This article focuses on traditions that occur during Shimotsuki and Shiwasu (the eleventh and twelfth months of the old Japanese lunisolar calendar), including the fire festivals of O-hitaki, Niinamesai, and Daikondaki; events that celebrate vi...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brill
[2020]
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| In: |
Journal of Religion in Japan
Year: 2020, Volume: 9, Issue: 1/3, Pages: 195-212 |
| Further subjects: | B
Festival performance
B Purification B ōharae B Folklore B o-hitaki B visiting deities |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | Kyoto is home to a number of unique year-end festivals. This article focuses on traditions that occur during Shimotsuki and Shiwasu (the eleventh and twelfth months of the old Japanese lunisolar calendar), including the fire festivals of O-hitaki, Niinamesai, and Daikondaki; events that celebrate visiting deities, such as Daishikō; and purification rites of Shintō, Buddhist, and folk tradition, such as Kakure nenbutsu, Butsumyōe, and Sekizoro. Analysis and comparison of these rituals reveals a common motivation for their origin. As the power of the sun wanes with the winter solstice, the people of Kyoto in the past felt a need to reflect on the previous year, cleanse themselves of accumulated sin and misfortune, and pray that the coming year would bring peace, fortune, and a fertile harvest. |
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| ISSN: | 2211-8349 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Religion in Japan
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/22118349-00901010 |