A reisai is a Shinto ritual [ja; en] held at a shrine every year and is considered the most important.[1]

The annual festival, or Reisai, is held once a year, often on a day of special historical significance to the enshrined deity [ja] or the shrine itself. For shrines dedicated to deities who were historical figures, this festival often coincides with the figure's birthday or death anniversary. In cases where there is no specific historical date, the festival is typically held during the spring [ja] or autumn [ja] as a general celebration. The date of the Reisai is fixed and cannot be arbitrarily changed. Following World War II, shrines under the jurisdiction of the Association of Shinto Shrines are required to obtain approval from the Association if there is a need to change the date of the Reisai.[1]

History change

The name "Reisai" began to be used in the early modern period ; before that, the festival was called Omatsuri [ja] (Grand Festival) or Onmatsuri (Imperial Festival), or the shrine's name was added to the word "matsuri" (festival), resulting in names such as Kasuga Festival or Iwashimizu Festival. Even today, this name is recorded in the "Shoreki" section of the Jingu calendar . In the early modern period, illustrated guides to famous places [fr] around the country would often include entries such as "XX Shrine Annual Festival on XX Month XX Day," which shows that it had become common to refer to important festivals that represent a shrine as annual festivals.[1]

Under the Meiji shrine system, annual festivals, along with the Niiname-sai and Kinen-sai festivals, were designated as 'great festivals', and imperial envoys offering sacred offerings [ja] were sent to national and prefectural shrines, local shrines, village shrines, and some village shrines (shrines designated for the offering of sacred offerings) to make offerings from the state and the imperial family.[1]

After the Second World War, the system of offerings of sacred offerings from the government was abolished, but imperial envoys still visit imperial shrines during annual festivals. At other shrines, instead of the official system of offering heihaku, the Association of Shinto Shrines offers 'Honchohei' (offerings from the Association of Shinto Shrines) (however, this is limited to shrines that are under the jurisdiction of the Association of Shinto Shrines ).

An example of a regular festival day change

shrine Regular festival day
Kashihara Shrine [ja; en] February 11th
Kasuga-taisha March 13th
Ōmiwa Shrine April 9
Katori Shrine [ja; en] April 14th
Heian Shrine [ja; en] April 15
Okunitama Shrine [ja; en] May 5
Izumo-taisha May 14
Kamo Shrine May 15
Atsuta Shrine June 5
Yasaka Shrine June 15
Hikawa Shrine [ja; en] Aug. 1
Kashima Shrine [ja; en] September 1st
Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine September 15
Dazaifu Tenmangū [ja; en] September 25
Mononobe Shrine [ja; en] October 9
Isonokami Shrine [ja; en] October 15
Meiji Shrine November 3

References change

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  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Reisai | 國學院大學デジタルミュージアム". web.archive.org. 2023-12-07. Retrieved 2024-04-07.