Niiname-no-Matsuri

Niinamesai, the Grand Harvest Festival, is one of the most important Shinto rites performed by the Emperor of Japan. In this ceremony the Emperor offers the newly harvested rice and other grains of the year to the heavenly and earthly deities, expresses gratitude for the harvest, and himself partakes of the new grain as a gift received from the gods. It is held every year on November 23 at the Shinkaden, a sacred hall standing near the Three Palace Sanctuaries within the Imperial Palace, and on the same day Niinamesai is also observed at Shinto shrines throughout the country.

Among the many rites of the imperial court, Niinamesai is classified as a major festival and is regarded as one of the most significant ceremonies handed down from ancient times. The Niinamesai that an Emperor performs for the first time after his enthronement is given a special name, Daijosai, and is celebrated only once in a reign. Today November 23 is the national holiday known as Labor Thanksgiving Day, and its origin lies in this very festival. The holiday's essential meaning of gratitude for harvest and labor is rooted in the long history of prayer that has accompanied rice cultivation in Japan.

History and Origins

From ancient times, communities across Japan held customs celebrating the harvest of the five grains, and Niinamesai can be understood as the elevation of such harvest rituals into a rite of state. Its prototype is thought to trace back to the rice-farming rituals of the Yayoi period. Growing rice and giving thanks for its bounty came to stand at the very center of imperial rites, for the abundance of the rice harvest was seen as inseparable from the peace and stability of the realm. To offer that abundance to the gods and give thanks was thus regarded as a sacred act bound up with the very foundation of governance.

References to the rite appear in the ancient chronicles. The Nihon Shoki contains a description of the Emperor partaking of new grain in the section preceding the accession of Emperor Jimmu, and the word niiname itself appears in the entry for the fortieth year of Emperor Nintoku. However far these accounts may reflect actual history, they testify that the rite of Niinamesai has been embedded deep in Japanese consciousness since the age of myth. In time, with the establishment of the ritsuryo legal codes, Niinamesai took shape as a rite of state, incorporating the forms of the sacred rites of Ise Grand Shrine while being carried on as a court ceremony.

In the medieval period, however, the festival faced a long interruption. After being held in the fourth year of the Kansho era (1463) under Emperor Gohanazono, the Onin War and the impoverishment of the imperial court forced Niinamesai into a prolonged suspension. This break reflected the harshness of an age in which the court could no longer maintain the very rites it was meant to uphold. Restoration came in the Edo period, when in the first year of the Genroku era (1688), through the strong will of the Retired Emperor Reigen, the festival was revived in a simplified form. Because there was no Shinkaden to serve as the ceremonial hall at that time, the Shishinden was used in its place.

Later, in the fifth year of the Genbun era (1740) under Emperor Sakuramachi, the festival was restored to its original form, and in the third year of the Kansei era (1791) under Emperor Kokaku, the Shinkaden was rebuilt as part of the construction of the imperial residence. From that year onward, Niinamesai has continued without interruption as a court ceremony down to the present day. From 1872 an imperial envoy was dispatched to Ise Grand Shrine to coincide with Niinamesai, and under the Imperial Household Ritual Law enacted in 1908 the festival was designated a major rite. Although that law was abolished after the war, Niinamesai has continued to be conducted in accordance with its established forms ever since.

Highlights

The Rite of the Shinkaden The heart of Niinamesai is the rite of the Shinkaden, performed at night. The Emperor purifies himself through ritual bathing, dons pure white ceremonial vestments, and proceeds to the Shinkaden amid the light of torches. During this procession court musicians play sacred kagura songs, and a solemn atmosphere of ancient ritual fills the darkness. Within a sacred time and space set apart from the everyday, prayers for the nation's harvest are offered.

The Offering and the Prayer In the main chamber of the Shinkaden, the Emperor himself, following ancient practice, uses tweezer-shaped bamboo chopsticks to place the sacred food onto dishes of oak leaves and offers them before the deities in a rite called goshinku. Having completed the offering, the Emperor recites a prayer of address to Amaterasu Omikami and the heavenly and earthly deities. The fact that this sequence is performed by the Emperor himself, entrusted to no one else, expresses the essential meaning of Niinamesai.

The Evening and Morning Rites The rite of the Shinkaden is carried out twice, repeating the same sequence of actions. The first part is called the evening food rite and the second the morning food rite. In older custom these were held during the late-night hours, and today they take place from around 18:00 to 20:00 and from 23:00 to 1:00. There is an interpretation that the Emperor secludes himself during the hours when the power of the sun is weakest and renews its sacred vitality at dawn, so that the very timing carries deep symbolism.

The Pure White Vestments The ceremonial robe worn by the Emperor only during the rite of the Shinkaden and the Yuki and Suki hall rites of the Daijosai is the most pure and sacred of all the vestments the Emperor wears for Shinto rites. It is made of plain white raw silk, and the crown and robe are of a special design. The undyed white silk visually embodies the purity of this festival.

The Sacred Offerings Before the deities are placed a rich variety of offerings: steamed rice and rice gruel, millet rice and millet gruel, white sake and black sake brewed from the new rice, fresh fish such as sea bream and abalone, and fruits such as dried persimmon and chestnut. The vessels holding these offerings are made of oak leaves pierced with bamboo splints, and the cooking fire is the sacred kindled fire. Everything is prepared under conditions of the utmost purity, and the fact that the offerings themselves are treated as divine reveals the conceptions of ancient ritual.

The Chinkonsai of the Previous Day On the day before Niinamesai, the Chinkonsai, or spirit-pacifying rite, is held at the Ryokiden. This rite is said to strengthen the spirit of the Emperor as he approaches Niinamesai the following day, and kagura is offered. Preparing body, mind, and spirit before the festival, this rite shows that Niinamesai is not merely a harvest thanksgiving but a rite bound up with the renewal of the Emperor's spiritual vitality.

Event Information

• Date: Every year on November 23 (the present Labor Thanksgiving Day)
• Main Venue: The Shinkaden attached to the Three Palace Sanctuaries within the Imperial Palace
• Celebrant: The Emperor (the offering and the recitation of the prayer)
• Nationwide Shrines: Niinamesai is observed at shrines throughout Japan on the same day
• Ise Grand Shrine: The Grand Food Rite and the offering rite are performed at the Outer and Inner Shrines, followed by seven days of rites at related shrines
• Status: A major rite of the imperial court; the first Niinamesai after enthronement is called Daijosai

Related Events and Nearby Places

A rite deeply connected with Niinamesai is the Kannamesai of Ise Grand Shrine. Held in October at Ise, Kannamesai offers the year's new grain to Amaterasu Omikami and forms a pair with Niinamesai as an important harvest thanksgiving rite. On the day of Niinamesai, the Grand Food Rite and the offering rite are also performed at Ise, so that the imperial court and Ise offer thanks for the harvest in mutual resonance.

At Izumo Grand Shrine, the Koden Shinjosai, or ancient-tradition harvest rite, is performed on the night of the same day. All the food used in the ceremony is cooked with a sacred fire kindled at Kumano Grand Shrine, and when the priest calls out, the Izumo Kokuso comes forward. Solemn rites such as the tooth-hardening rite, the dance of a hundred rounds, and the kettle rite have been handed down, making it a precious ceremony that preserves the ancient form of the harvest rite to this day.

While November 23 is widely enjoyed as Labor Thanksgiving Day, knowing that Niinamesai lies behind it gives the holiday a far richer meaning. At shrines throughout the country, ordinary worshippers can also visit on the day of Niinamesai and come into close contact with the ancient Japanese prayer of gratitude for the harvest.

Related Information

• Month: November (every year on November 23)
• Category: Court ritual (major rite) and annual observance
• Origin: Described in the ancient chronicles; the prototype is said to trace back to Yayoi-period rice rituals
• Transition: Interrupted in the medieval period, revived and restored in the Edo period (Genroku, Genbun, and Kansei eras), and continuing to the present
• Present Holiday: Became Labor Thanksgiving Day under the Holiday Law of 1948
• Related Rites: Daijosai (the first Niinamesai after enthronement), Kannamesai (Ise, October), Chinkonsai (the previous day)

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