Sake rituals festivals

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Sake 酒 rice wine for rituals and festivals

- quote -
Sake and Japanese Culture
The god of sake was also the god of rice growing and harvesting.
So when the people prayed for good growing conditions and thanked the god for a good harvest, they connected with the god of sake. Sake linked the people to their gods, and then linked people together in congeniality. In this way, sake took on a vital role in religious festivities, agricultural rites, and many different ceremonial events, from marriages to funerals.
. . . Sake is more than a drink taken to enjoy a tipsy time — it also serves a vital social purpose at the defining moments in life.
- quote by Takeo Koizumi -


. sake 酒 saké, saki - Japanese rice wine .
- Introduction -


The following is a summary of the many pages about Sake in the Darumapedia.
It will be updated regularly, so please come back visiting.

Gabi Greve, April 2015

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- - - - - Offerings of sake barrels from the breweries


CLICK for more photos !

. Matsunoo Taisha 松尾大社 Matsunoo Grand Shrine
Matsuno'o Taisha - Matsu-no-o .
A shrine to celebrate the making, selling and drinking of Sake.

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- - - - - Sake for Rituals - - - - -


Before cutting down a big cedar tree, the wood cutter pours a cup of sake on the stem and roots of the tree and says a short prayer.
Then the chainsaw starts to work.

Gabi Greve, in my garden, April 2015


oshaku, o-shaku お酌 pouring sake
Drinking sake is a social event.
You never pour your own cup, but have a friend (or payed geisha) sit at your side for that purpose.
Once your own cup is emptied, you pour a drink for the other person.


There are special manner manuals on how to do this properly.
- source : www.f-maeda.com



shukuhai 祝杯 sake for a toast on an auspicious situation


source :　marippe3.exblog.j

sharing a drink
with eternal friends -
spring in the air

Gabi Greve, April 2015


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. miki, shinshu お神酒 Sake of the Gods .
- quote -
Rice wine (sake) offered to the kami, a necessary part of the food offerings known as shinsen. Usually referred to as omiki, or alternately as shinshu, the term miki is a combination of two characters, the honorific mi and the character for "wine" (ki).
. . . . . In ancient documents, miki is also called miwa, and the deity Miwa no kami 三輪の神　is thus famous as the kami who presides over sake.
- source : Saito Michiko


- quote -
The religious use of sake (o-miki お神酒)
In the word o-miki, the reading "ki" is assigned to the character for sake. As such, the final meaning would again be akin to "the sake that helps one prosper," but perhaps this time there is a bit more of a religious association. Linguistically, sakae-no-ki changed to sakae-no-ke, sakae-ke and sake-ke before arriving at the vernacular manifestation we use today.
- source : John Gauntner


. sakaki 榊 sakaki tree, Cleyera japonica, masakaki .
The sacred tree of Japanese Shinto.

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otoso, o-toso　お屠蘇 -お屠蘇 seasoned sweet rice wine

In the Edo period, Mirin was drunk as a sweet sake. Otoso, traditionally drunk on Shōgatsu New Year was made by soaking a spice mixture in mirin. It can be seen as a kind of herbal medicine for a long life.
In the Kansai style of cooking, mirin is briefly boiled before using, to allow some of the alcohol to evaporate, while in the Kantō regional style, the mirin is used untreated. Kansai-style boiled mirin is called nikiri mirin (煮切り味醂), literally "thoroughly boiled mirin."

. mirin 味醂 - みりん sweet rice wine

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sansan kudo. san san kudo 　三三九度　
“thrice three, nine times”- “three three nine times”



- quote -
Japanese Wedding Traditions: San San Kudo
This ceremony is a ritualized drinking of sake by the couple, and sometimes their parents as well which serves as a binding ceremony. There are three sakazuki (ceremonial sake cups) stacked one on top of the other in a tier. Both the bride and the groom sip from each cup three times, hence the “three three nine times”. Three cannot be divided in two, making it a particularly lucky number for a wedding in Japanese culture.
- Symbolism in a San San Kudo Ceremony
There are many different ideas about the symbolism of the three sake cups. Some believe it represents heaven, earth, and mankind, others believe it represents the love, wisdom, and happiness which grow over time in a marriage. Another source says the three cups represents three human flaws of hatred, passion, and ignorance.
- Variations of San San Kudo
Because this is such an old tradition, there are many variations. For example, sometimes parents join which expands the symbolism of three, as there are now three couples. Occasionally, couples only sip three times (only once on each cup), instead of three times on each cup. Technically, this is incorrect, as the name defines the ceremony as “three three nine times”.
- source : www.japanesestyle.com



kenpai 献盃 offering a drink

. Kenpaishiki 献盃式 in memory of Saint Shinran .
Drinking sake in a memorial service, at temple Honganji and others
January 1.


A special form of "social drinking" at a naorai 直会（なおらい) party:


CLICK for more photos !

After some meetings and rituals and also at the winning party of a sumo wrestler, a large sake cup 大杯 is handed around and each one has to take a sip.

. Naorai 直会 banquet that accompanies a matsuri .


. Naorai at Kashima Shrine 鹿島神宮 Kashima Jingu .

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. enju hai 延寿盃 Enju sake cup for a long life .
New Year ceremony enju sai 延寿祭 at Kashihara Jingu 橿原神宮, Nara


. hana no sake 花の酒 rice wine for blossom viewing .
..... hanamizake 花見酒 sake for the spring cherry blossom Hanami


. hatsumoode 初詣 first shrine visit of the New Year .
Often there are edible gold flakes in the first auspicious sake cup.


. jichinsai 地鎮祭 ground-breaking ceremony .
Before construction work, to pacify the earth deity and to purify the spot where construction will be carried out.


. jirooshu 治聾酒 sake to cure deafness .


. Kaenashi no kenpai 栢梨の献盃 .
a ritual drink of sake brewed with the juice of Japanese pears (nashi) from the village of Kaenashi in Settsu province 摂津国栢梨.
For the butsumyooe 仏名会 Buddha's Name Ceremony in winter.


. kijizake (kiji sake) 雉子酒, "pheasant ricewine" .
. . . . . kiji shu 雉子酒 / o kiji おきじ
Offered to all New Year visitors to the Emperor's palace.


. kiku no sake 菊の酒 chrysanthemum sake .
kikuzake 菊酒 - kikuka no sake 菊花の酒
for the Chrysanthemum Festival in September
- and
gumi no sake 茱萸の酒 sake with silverberries - for a long life


. nihonshu no hi 日本酒の日 Sake Day - October 01 .

ogi nite sake kumu 扇にて酒くむ
. drinking sake from a hand fan - a dance .


. tsukimizake　月見酒 drinking sake while moon viewing .

. yukimizake 雪見酒 drinking sake whilst viewing the snow falling .



Many rituals are also kigo for haiku.
. WKD - Ricewine, rice wine (sake, saké, saki) Reiswein .

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- - - - - Sake Festivals - - - - -

sake matsuri 酒祭り　- Sake festivals are very popular !

- reference - 酒祭り
- reference - Sake festival

Most festivals have a religious origin, but some are now rather commercial with the objective to sell local sake.

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- - - ABC-order of the festival name


doburoku sai どぶろく祭 Doburoku festival

At the shrine 白川八幡神社 Shirakawa Hachimangu in Gifu, there is a festival where doburoku rice wine is brewed for this shrine festival and then served to more than 5000 visitors.



Gifu 岐阜県　Hagimachi 萩町

doburoku どぶろく / 濁酒 nigorizake 濁り酒, unrefined sake
. Food and Drink from Gifu prefecture 岐阜県 .

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. Furukawa no okoshi daiko 古川の起し太鼓 "wake-up drums from Furukawa"
The participants wear white headband, white “tabi (Japanese socks)” and stomach band made from bleached cotton. Hida in mid April is still chilly and blows cold wind at night, but it has no effect to their body heated with sake and high spirits.
Gifu, 飛騨古川　Hida Furukawa town


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. Iriya Jinja Hokake Matsuri 揖屋神社 穂掛祭 . - Matsue
. . . the crowd is given super yummy sake in bamboo cups.


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. Kanda Myoojin Matsuri 神田明神祭り Kanda Myojin Festival . Edo / Tokyo
In summer for the Sanno Festival and in autumn for the Kanda festival rich merchants put a golden folding screen in front or their shop, placed a wooden stand in front of it (sanpoo 三方) and put up some offerings of sacred rice wine (miki　お神酒) .


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Kyokusui no En 曲水の宴 "floating poems on water"


CLICK for more photos !

A poetry ritual held at various shrines and parks in Japan.
Kyokusui was a pastime of the nobility in ancient times. A lacquer sake cup was set adrift in a stream and the participants, watching on a downstream bank, had to compose a short poem and then drink the sake in the cup when it reached them.

- reference -

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. Saikusa matsuri 三枝祭　Saikusa Lily Festival
Isagawa jinja 率川神社, Nara

During the festival black (nigori) and white sake (pure) (shiroki, kuroki) is poured into two barrels as an offering to the shrine deities. These barrels are decorated with many bamboo lilies from Mount Miwa.
This ritual dates back to the reign of Emperor Monmu Tenno　文武天皇 (701–703).
The black sake was made with ash. Sake brewers added ash of camellia and evergreen trees as a way to cut the acidity.
Sake made in Izumo, Higo and Satsuma were especially famous for their black coloring.


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Sake Matsuri Hibita Jinja 酒祭 - 比々多神社
An the end of November

Sake brewers from all over Japan come here to pray.


. Hibita Jinja 比々多神社 .
1472 Sannomiya, Isehara, Kanagawa

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Sake Matsuri Saijo 酒まつりは西条 - Hiroshima
Hiroshima annually ranks 4th or 5th in volume of sake produced, and Saijo is one of Japan’s most famous brewing districts. In celebration of this, once a year everyone goes to the local park and attempts to drink as much of it as possible.

You can wander around the breweries and sample some of their products (the free stuff is generally lower quality though). Or join the masses in the Sake Hiroba 酒ひろば in the park, where for ¥1300 (¥1600 on the day) you get your own little cup from which to sample the 900 kinds of sake from all over the country on offer.


If you get there in good time there is plenty of high quality stuff to be had, and it’s a great opportunity to experience the diversity (and potency) of sake. There is no re-admission to the main Sake Hiroba, so if you want to do tour the breweries and stagger around the back streets, you should probably do that first.
- source : gethiroshima.com

- source : sakematsuri.com (Japanese)

There is a special food in Saijo Town:
. bishonabe, bisho nabe 美酒鍋 hodgepodge simmered with sake only .
bisho nabe びしょ鍋 : The workers in a sake factory were called "bisho" , from the sound of splashing water, bisho bisho ビショビショ. For the Chinese characters, the present version was then choosen for more effect, meaning "Beautiful Ricewine" 美酒鍋.

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. Sake Summit in Nangai 　酒遊サミットinなんがい　
Daisen town,　Akita


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. shiritsumi matsuri 尻摘祭 rump-bumping festival
hitting the buttocks festival - rear-end sumo
At Otonashi Jinja 音無神社 Otonashi shrine, Shizuoka


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. Tagata Shrine Fertility Festival 田県神社の豊年祭
Komaki, Nagoya
The festival is fun with a lot of sake drinking, however the background of the festival is rather more serious.


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. Togakushi Soba Festival 戸隠そば祭り
People buy small sake cups on the eve of the festival and eat soba at any (or all!) of the twenty one participating restaurants.
Togakushi Shrine 戸隠神社, Nagano



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End-of-season Festivities:
Koshiki-daoshi and Kaizou
- source : John Gauntner's Sake World

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The Buddhist version of Sake is called
the Water of Wisdom, Hanya no Mizu, 般若の水,
and consumed even by monks and priests at prestigeous temple compounds.
source : The Insider's Guide to Sake - Philip Harper




. Sake, Ricewine and Daruma .
Nihonshu 日本酒 the Drink of Japan





masumasu Daruma 升々だるま
- - - - - masumasu　ますます 【益々】/　 升ます
... is an expression for things getting better and better.

. masuzake, masu sake 升酒 rice wine served in a wooden masu .


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- - - - - Other references to Sake - - - - -


. Azuki-Arai 小豆洗い Monster washing azuki beans .
a sake label


. Doosojin 道祖神 Dosojin Wayside Deities .
Some couples are exchanging a coup of sake (shuugizoo　祝儀像).
Usually he holds the small cup and she pours for him. Or he holds a ladle and she holds a fan (杓扇).


. Fujiwara no Hidehira 藤原秀衡 (1122? - 1187) .
Yoshitsune and Benkei 　義経と弁慶
Hidehira had his son promise to continue to shelter Yoshitsune and his retainer Benkei, but the son gave into Yoritomo and surrounded the castle with his troops, forcing Yoshitsune to commit seppuku (his head would be preserved in sake and given to Yoritomo) and resulting in the famous standing death of Benkei. Yoritomo destroyed the Fujiwara domain and killed Hidehira's son.


. - Kizakura　Gekkeikan キザクラ　黄桜　"Yellow Cherry Blossom" - .
Sake and the Kappa かっぱ water goblin





. Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉　the haiku poet and his sake and sakazuki .
. . . and poems about people being drunk . . .
ararezake あられ酒 "Hail Wine" from Nara
There is also a sweet potato schnaps with this name.



. sakazuki 杯／盃／坏 small cup for sake .
choku, ochoku ちょく【猪口】Choko, O-choko and 　食いのみ guinomi


. Sake no Hosomichi 酒のほそ道 "The Narrow Roads of Ricewine" .
Razuweru Hosoki ラズウェル細木 Rozwell Hosoki


. Suzumon 鈴 家紋 Suzumon Family Clan .
Suzumon and Sake
Sake has been linked so closely to shrines that we have a common saying “sacred sake is offered to every god”. Since the gratitude and prayer for good harvest of rice are key elements of Shinto, sake, or rice wine, is essential for festivals and rituals. Therefore, it was common that priests brewed sake in shrines.
. . . Long-lasting sake brewing since ancient times is handiwork that predecessors respecting gods and nature have cultivated. Suzumon continues to dedicate our sake to Toyoakizu shrine, our local tutelary god, and Kumano Hongu Taisha shrine, which our ancestor has a link with, when the Rei-taisai festivals (regular rites and festivals) are held, cherishing our link with these shrines.


. tokkuri 徳利　 sake flask .
kayoi-tokkuri, kayoidokkuri, kayoi-dokkuri 　通い徳利　
binboo tokkuri, binboodokkuri 貧乏徳利 for the poor
binboodaru 貧乏樽 bimbodaru, Tokkuri for the poor
- - - - - atsukan 熱カン hot rice wine in a tokkuri
- - - - - sakedaru　酒樽 sake barrel




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. Mingei 民芸　Folk Art of Japan .
CLICK on the photos below for more sake and mingei times !




. dorei どれい / 土鈴 clay bells .







. kokeshi こけし wooden dolls .






. tenugui 手ぬぐい small hand towels .


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Inside the Shrine - Shintō Concepts, What’s What
. Mark Schumacher .



. Matsunoo Taisha 松尾大社 Matsunoo Grand Shrine
Matsuno'o Taisha - Matsu-no-o .
A shrine in Kyoto to celebrate the making, selling and drinking of Sake.
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Also introducing other shrines closely related to sake.


. Yokai Sake 妖怪 酒 and local monster legends .



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. Shrine, Shinto Shrine (jinja　神社) - Introduction .

- #sakerituals #sakefestivals #reiswein -
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Matsunoo Taisha

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Matsunoo Taisha 松尾大社 Matsunoo Grand Shrine
Matsuno'o Taisha - Matsu-no-o
Matsunoo Jinja 松尾神社 Matsunoo Shrine (former name)

3 Arashiyamamiya-chō, Nishikyō-ku, Kyoto / 京都府京都市西京区嵐山宮町３




The characters, usually read Matsuo 松尾, here are read as まつのお / まつのを matsu no o

Matsunō Daimyōjin 松尾大明神 The Great Matsunoo Deity

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This shrine is known as a sacred place for 酒 Sake Rice wine, 松尾様　Matsuo Sama, 松尾神　Matsuo no Kami -
referring to the shrine complex name to honor the deity.

The first sake in Japan has been introduced in the region of Nara, to prepare ritual miki 神酒
for the shrine and purification rituals.

- - - - - Offerings of sake barrels from the breweries.

CLICK for more photos !

- quote -
Sake and Japanese Culture
The god of sake was also the god of rice growing and harvesting. So when the people prayed for good growing conditions and thanked the god for a good harvest, they connected with the god of sake. Sake linked the people to their gods, and then linked people together in congeniality. In this way, sake took on a vital role in religious festivities, agricultural rites, and many different ceremonial events, from marriages to funerals.
. . . Sake is more than a drink taken to enjoy a tipsy time—it also serves a vital social purpose at the defining moments in life.
- quote by Takeo Koizumi -

. sake 酒 saké, saki - Japanese rice wine .
- Introduction -

. jizake 地酒 local brands of rice wine .


The religious use of sake (o-miki お神酒)
In the word o-miki, the reading "ki" is assigned to the character for sake. As such, the final meaning would again be akin to "the sake that helps one prosper," but perhaps this time there is a bit more of a religious association. Linguistically, sakae-no-ki changed to sakae-no-ke, sakae-ke and sake-ke before arriving at the vernacular manifestation we use today.
source : JOHN GAUNTNER


- - - - - To make sake, first you need good rice - - - - -

Imperial Rituals in Japan
The Emperor, embodying the god of the ripened rice plant, plants the first rice of the spring and harvests rice from the plants of the autumn. In one of the most solemn Shinto ceremonies of the year the Emperor, acting as the country's chief Shinto priest, ritually sows rice in the royal rice paddy on the grounds of the Imperial Palace.



. The Japanese Rice Culture 稲 ine, the rice plant .


. Ise Jingū 伊勢神宮 and the Rice Culture of Japan .
Ise no o-taue 伊勢の御田植 planting rice at Ise Shrine


. Inari Ōkami 稲荷大神 Protector Deity of the Rice Harvest .


- - - - - Second
for a good sake, tasty water is also a necessity given by the deities of Japan.
Water, well water, spring water of Japan　日本の水　- 水の神様　


- - - - - Third
kooji 麹　Aspergillus oryzae, Sake koji, for fermentation

Steamed rice and koji (rice cultivated with koji mold, technically known as aspergillus oryzae) are first mixed with yeast to make a yeast starter, in which there is a very high concentration of yeast cells. After that, more rice, koji, and water are added in three batches over four days.
This mash is allowed to sit from 18 to 32 days, after which it is pressed, filtered and blended.
- source : John Gauntner

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- - - - - Now back to the shrine ! - - - - -


CLICK for more photos !

quote
Matsuo Taisha, sometimes known as Matsu no o taisha
（まつのおたいしゃ）, is an interesting ancient shrine on the outskirts of Kyoto that offers a little more to see and do than most of the often visited shrines in the area. It is also less crowded.

Located near Arashiyama, it was founded in 701, almost 100 years before the founding of Kyoto. It was founded by the head of the Hata clan, an immigrant clan that ruled the area before the moving of the capital from Nara. The Hata also founded the famous Fushimi Inari Shrine and temple Koryu-Ji.

The Hata were instrumental in bringing sake brewing techniques from Korea,
and the shrine has a deep and long association with sake brewers, who still take water from the
sacred well Kame no I　亀の井, the Well of the Turtle / Tortoise , located in the precincts behind the waterfall Reiki no Taki.
The water causes longevity and revival and is also used for Miso paste production.
So the sake brewers and miso makers come here to pray and bring their offerings.



CLICK for more photos !


. The Hata Clan 秦氏　Hata Uji .
and the Korean and Christian connection


- quote -
Honden
Since the time the Hata clan founded the shrine, the Honden, or the main shrine building, has been through several reconstructions, and the present one was built in 1397 and repaired in 1542 during the Muromachi period. Because of its unique style of roof, which is called Matsuo-zukuri, or Matsuo style, the Honden has been designated as an important cultural property.


Shofu-en 松風苑
Shofu-en has three famous gardens: Iwakura, Horai and Kyokusui. These gardens were designed by Mirei Shigemori during the Showa era. They are not so old but are among the greatest of the works made after the Meiji era. He designed them with a combination of rocks, and the opposite ideas of “stillness” and “movement” are harmonized well.

・Iwakura Garden 磐座 (The ancient era style) Joko Garden 上古の庭
This garden was made to be the spiritual place for the god of Mt. Matsuo. Two main boulders symbolize the god and the goddess who are enshrined in this shrine. Other rocks around them represent dieties dependent on the main ones.

・Horai Garden (Kamakura era style) 蓬莱の庭
The Kaiyu style, which you can enjoy by walking around the garden, is used here, and there are islands in the pond. In this garden, we can imagine a place where an unworldly man lives. It is said that this garden expresses Horai ideas, which include a longing for a world where people will not grow old and die.

・Kyokusui Garden (Heian era style) 曲水の庭
The Heian era, when Matsunoo Grand Shrine was most prosperous, is the theme of this garden. Water channels its way along the foot of a hill, curving seven times, and there are many glaucous (light blue and green) rocks on the hill. The design is simple, but its color scheme is unique.
- source : thekyotoproject.org

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- quote -
It is said that during the move of the capital from Nagaoka to Kyoto, a noble saw a turtle(kame) bathing under the spring's waterfall and created a shrine there. It is one of the oldest shrines in the Kyoto area, its founding extending back to 700 AD. The restorative properties of the spring bring many local sake and miso companies to the shrine for prayers that their product will be blessed.

The shrine also serves a kinpaku (gold leaf filled) miki (or blessed sake) during hatsumode first shrine visit in the New Year.
- source : wikipedia

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- - - - - Deities in residence

Ooyama kui no kami, Oyamakui no Kami 大山咋神 (くいのかみ) Kui no Kami, Oyamagui no Kami, Oo-yamagui-no-kami おおやまぐいのかみ
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Ichi kishima hime no mikoto, Ichikishima Hime no Mikoto
市杵島姫命 / 一杵島姫の命(いちきしまひめのみこと)
also known as 中津島姫命　Nakatsushima Hime no Mikoto, a female deity protecting travellers.
- - - - - and
Tsukiyomi no mikoto 月読命

The deity Ôyamagui no kami, better known as Sanoo, 山王 "Mountain King", is enshrined at the shrine Hie Jinja in Shiga Prefecture and in other Hie shrines throughout Japan. The term dates back to the Buddhist priests at temple Enryaku-Ji on Mount Hiei in Kyoto, who worshiped this "god of the mountain".

. Sanno, Sanoo 山王 the "Mountain King" .
and Hiyoshi Taisha 日吉大社 Hiyoshi taisha





中津島姫命　Nakatsushima hime no mikoto

. Ichikishima Hime no Mikoto 杵島比売命 .
One of the three deities that will bring beauty.
Utsukushi Gozen Sha 美御前社


Tsukiyomi no mikoto 月読命
- quote -
Other names: Tsuki no kami (Nihongi), Tsukiyomi no mikoto,
Tsukiyumi no mikoto (Nihongi).
The second of Izanagi and Izanami's "three noble children," and usually considered a male kami with rule over the night. The name tsuku-yomi is thought to be originally related to the lunar calendar, and refers to the "reading" (yomu) of the phases of the "moon" (tsuki). According to Kojiki and an "alternate writing" in Nihongi, Tsukuyomi came into being when Izanagi washed his right eye as he was undergoing ablution. Tsukuyomi was entrusted by Izanagi with rule variously over the sea (Nihongi) or over the realm of night (Kojiki). In the main account of Nihongi, Tsukuyomi is produced jointly from Izanagi and Izanami, and is entrusted to the sky as a complement to the sun kami. In another "alternate writing" related by Nihongi, Tsukuyomi comes into being from the white copper mirror held in Izanagi's right hand. These accounts of the kami's genesis, involving the juxtaposition of left eye to right eye, left hand to right hand, and sun to moon, tend to agree with the interpretation of Tsukuyomi as a male counterpart to Amaterasu, who is commonly considered female.

In Kojiki, Tsukuyomi does not appear again after the anecdote regarding his birth, but an "alternate writing" in Nihongi relates that Tsukuyomi originally resided together with Amaterasu in heaven, but after killing the kami of foods Ukemochi, he was condemned by Amaterasu as an "evil kami" and forced to live apart from the sun, resulting in the separation of day and night.

Nihongi's record of Emperor Kensō includes an episode in which a human medium delivers an oracle of the moon kami stating that land should be offered to the kami Takamimusuhi. The fact that the aforementioned "alternate writing" transmitted by Nihongi describes Tsukuyomi as ruler of the sea and killer of the food deity Ukemochi gives him characteristics in common with the kami Susanoo; in consideration of the theme of the killing of the food deity and the relation of the moon to harvest in the lunar calendar, Tsukuyomi can be considered a tutelary of agriculture.

Tsukuyomi is the object of worship (saijin) at the detached shrine (betsugū) Tsukuyomi no Miya of the Grand Shrines of Ise (Ise Jingū), as well as at several shrines listed in the Engishiki (see shikinaisha) in the Yamashiro and Ise areas.
- source : Mori Mizue - Kokugakuin 2005


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shuin 朱印 stamp of the shrine





o-sake お酒に関するお守り -  3 amulets related to sake
服酒守 - for sake drinkers
お酒を醸る人 - for sake brewers
お酒の販売に関わるお守り for sake sellers





omamori お守り - click for more amulets



Matsunoo Taisha Shrine
Matsunoo Taisha Shrine, familiarly known as Matsuo-san, is the dominant Shinto shrine in the western part of Kyoto, and serves residents of Nishikyo-ku, Ukyoku, Shimogyo-ku and Minami-ku : about one third of Kyoto's population.

Unlike most shrines, it features a massive outer gate with two guardian deities, and among its other treasures are three of the oldest and best-preserved solid wood carved images, presumably representing the three enshrined deities:
Oo-yamagui-no-kami (male), Nakatsu-shima-hime-no-mikoto (female), and Tsukiyomi-no-mikoto (male).
These statues alone are worth a visit, and along the way one passes through various gardens and can visit the numinous waterfall tricking down from Mount Matsuo (also known as Wakeikazuchi no Yama).

It is said that a lord of the Hata clan was riding in the area and saw a tortoise in the stream at the foot of the waterfall.
From that time worship started. Matsuo Shrine was founded in 701 c.e., making it one of the oldest shrines in Kyoto. It was influential in the move of the capital to Nagaoka-kyo and then to Heian-kyo (present day Kyoto).

Tortoises have long been revered in China, Korea, and Japan as emblems of good fortune, particularly long life and good health. The water from this spring is said to be healthful, and the shrine is visited both by ordinary people to get good water and its benefits and by manufacturers of miso paste and sake brewers, who pray for the success of their enterprises.
Throughout the precincts one will see figures of tortoises, the most famous of which is the Kame-no-I, Tortoise Well, near the entrance to the first garden.

The three gardens were built in the Showa era (1975) at great expense and personal effort by Mr. Mirei Shigemori.
- snip -
The shrine complex's oldest building, the inner shrine, dates back to the Muromachi period (1397) and is famous for its unusual roof, which is known as Matsuo-zukuri (Matsuo style) and has been designated an important cultural asset.
On any given day, individuals, families, and businesspeople visit to pray for happiness, health, long life, prosperity, safety, and other wishes.
- source : www.matsunoo.or.jp - english

- Homepage of the Shrine
京都市西京区嵐山宮町３ - Matsunoo-Taisha
- source : www.matsunoo.or.jp

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酒神としての信仰
狂言「福の神」によると、松尾神は「神々の酒奉行である」とされ、
現在も神事に狂言「福の神」が奉納されるほか、酒神として酒造関係者の信仰を集める。その信仰の篤さは神輿庫に積み上げられた、奉納の菰樽の山に顕著である。松尾神を酒神とする信仰は、起源は明らかでないが、一説に渡来系氏族の秦氏が酒造技術に優れたことに由来するともいい(同社御由緒)、『日本書紀』雄略天皇紀に見える「秦酒公」との関連も指摘される[32]。中世以降は貞享元年（1684年）成立の『雍州府志』、井原西鶴の『西鶴織留』に記述が見える。社伝では社殿背後にある霊泉「亀の井」の水を酒に混ぜると腐敗しないといい、醸造家がこれを持ち帰る風習が残っている。
source :　wikipedia





Kyogen: Fuku no Kami 福の神 "The Happiness Deity"

- reference -

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- quote -
the venerable Nichizo and Tenjin Sugawara Michizane
. . . once Nichizo prayed at the shrine of the god of Matsunoo to know which Buddha the god came from.
There was a violent thunderstorm and darkness fell. Then a voice from inside the sanctuary said,
"The Buddha Bibashi".
The awed Nichizo went forward and came before an ancient man who had the face of a child.

Japanese Tales - By Royall Tyler
- source : books.google.co.jp


Bibashi Butsu 毘婆尸佛 = Matsunō Daimyōjin 松尾大明神
In Buddhist tradition, Vipassī Vipaśyin (Pāli) is the twenty-second of twenty-eight Buddhas described in Chapter 27 of the Buddhavamsa. The Buddhavamsa is a Buddhist text which describes the life of Gautama Buddha and the twenty-seven Buddhas who preceded him. It is the fourteenth book of the Khuddaka Nikāya, which in turn is part of the Sutta Piṭaka. The Sutta Piṭaka is one of three pitakas (main sections) which together constitute the Tripiṭaka, or Pāli Canon of Theravāda Buddhism.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !




Bibashi Butsu 毘婆尸佛


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- Matsunoo Grand Shrine (also known as Matsuo Grand Shrine)
This shrine is the oldest shrine in Kyoto, and the divinity worshipped here is a god of brewing sake. Throughout the year, more than a thousand people who are engaged in brewing sake visit Matsunoo Grand Shrine. There is also a famous well, Kame-no-I, as well as three gardens, and the treasury and Honden have been designated as important cultural properties.

Sake-no-Shiryokan (Museum of Sake)
Since Matsunoo Grand Shrine has housed a god of sake from ancient times, it is believed that sake brewed with water from here will bring people happiness and prosperity. In the Museum of Sake,we can see the tools used in brewing sake that were donated by sake brewers, and also we can learn about the tradition and history of sake.
- source : Maki Mizobata; Natsuki Mitsuya

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- - - - - Yearly Festivals - - - - -

Oshogatsu (New Year's) attracts the biggest crowds, but there are many others : Matsuo Matsuri, when six huge and richly ornamented mikoshi (portable shrines) are carried through the streets to the Katsura River and ferried across, where they will enjoy a sojourn on the other side of the river before returning, again with great merriment, three weeks later on Omatsuri (Okaeri), Ondasai, a rice-protective rite in mid-July ;
Hassakusai (first Sunday in September), to pray for wind and rain to insure a bountiful crop of the "five grains" (rice, wheat, beans, and two kinds of millet), with sumo tournaments and the Yamabuki Kai (women's mikoshi, which goes from the shrine to Arashiyama and back).
Originally all such festivals were held on certain traditional dates, but with urbanization have come changes, so that now the major festivities are scheduled for Sundays.
- source : www.matsunoo.or.jp - english

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松尾大社（まつおたいしゃ） (Reisai Matsuo Taisha, Matsu no O Shrine)
April 2
The deity of the shrine is known as a God of Japanese sake.
Visitors can enjoy a Kyogen performance by the Shigeyama Family and a Noh performance by the Kongo School.

Matsunoo omatsuri oide 松尾祭御出 まつのおまつりおいで
Come to the Matsunoo Festival

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Kangetsu Matsuri, kangetsumatsuri 観月祭
Moon Viewing Festival
On the Full Moon night in September or October

With a great performance of drums and other classical music and
an autumn moon viewing haiku meeting
観月　俳句大会.
The three gardens are lit up also.

. Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉 Haiku Poet


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Matsu-no-o Taisha (松尾大社, Matsunoo Grand Shrine)
at the foot of Mt. Matsuo (松尾山) in Kyoto. Matsu-no-o Taisha was founded in 701 by Hata-no-Imikitori (秦忌寸都理) who was the leader of immigrant clan Hata-uji (秦氏, Hata clan) at the era, enshrining O-yama-gui-no-kami (大山咋神) as the Hata-uji's comprehensive and tutelary deity (総氏神).

In the legend, O-yama-gui-no-kami descended on a huge rock at the top of Mt. Matsuo at an ancient time, and the rock had been the religious site for local residents since then (usually this kind of holy rock is called Iwakura (磐座)). In 701, Hata-no-Imikitori built the shrine at the current location and transferred the deity's soul there. This is considered as the process of transformation of Shinto from ancient style to modern style by Hata-uji, and this is why Hata-uji is recognized as the important clan who formulated Shinto.

- Shared by Taisaku Nogi -
Joys of Japan, 2012

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The shrine grounds are home to 3,000 rose bushes which are in bloom during April and May.

About 30 years ago, the famous landscape designer and painter, Mirei Shigemori, built (at great expense) three gardens at the shrine, the Iwakura Garden, in ancient style, the Horai Garden, in Kamakura era style, and the Kyokusui Garden, in Heian era style.
They are considered some of the best modern gardens in Japan.
source : www.japanvisitor.com


. Shigemori Mirei 重森 三玲　Mirei Shigemori (1896-1975) .

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kaiun sake 開運酒 Sake for your Good Luck
（土井酒造場）



- source : kaiunsake.com


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亀の井酒造 Kamenoi Sake Brewery



- source : Kamenoi Shuzo in Yamagata Prefecture


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. Jindaisugi 神代 杉　
"Pine of the Gods" sacred sake　御神酒 omiki, o-miki .
shrine Tamaki Jinja 玉置神社 - Totsukawa Village, Yoshino County, Nara Prefecture

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- Reference : 松尾大社

- Reference : English


. Shrine, Shinto Shrine (jinja　神社) - Introduction .


The farmhouse is a temple between the fields and the woods.
The fields stand for the work of cultivation, the woods are untamed nature.
. ta no kami 田の神さま Deity of rice fields .
in autumn it turns to
yama no kami 山の神 Deity of the Mountains
-
noogami 農神 / ノウガミ様 - obosuna sama オボスナ様 / おぼすな様 Ubusuna deity
deity for agriculture, especially the rice fields and sake rituals.


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- - - - - More shrines with strong connections to sake


Saka Jinja 佐香神社 in Izumo - Matsuō Shrine
島根県出雲市小境町108 / 110 Kozakaicho, Izumo, Shimane


CLICK for more photos of this sake shrine !

- quote -
Doburoku Sake Festival at Saka-jinja Shrine (Matsuo-jinja Shrine) in Kozakai Town

On October 13th, Saka-jinja Shrine held a festival to celebrate the birthday of Kusu-no-kami, the god of sake (Japanese rice wine) brewing.

Despite the heavy winds and torrential downpour brought by typhoon 19, many people attended the festival. On this day, festival-goers come to the shrine grounds and pray to Kusu-no-kami. Once they are spiritually cleansed by washing their hands and mouth, they don white robes that signify their purity and are then allowed to drink the doburoku sake, which is a type of sacred sake now considered to be a part of the local culture of Izumo. One of the unique traits of this sake is that the softened grains of rice are not removed before serving, making the drink itself look very similar to soupy rice porridge.

We had the opportunity to speak with the very friendly head priest of the shrine and learned that the doburoku sake is made of locally grown Yamada-nishiki rice (a strain of rice that is used by top sake brewers) grown in a nearby rice field.

The chance to try doburoku sake comes only once a year at the Doburoku Sake Festival on October 13th, so mark your calendars and visit next year if you have the chance!
- source : facebook


- quote -
Shimane, the Birthplace of Sake
- snip - during Kami-ari-zuki, when the gods have all gathered at Izumo Taisha, they enjoy drinking sake together. This can be traced back to another connection between mythology and sake in a story found in the Izumo-no-kuni Fudoki. One of the functions of this text was to give the origins of location names, and for the origin of an area named Saka, it gives the following story:

Long ago, a great number of gods gathered along the banks of a river in this area, and set up a kitchen to prepare food and drink. Then they made sake, and spent the next 180 days drinking, after which they went their separate ways. The term used to describe this is sakamizuki, and from that word, the area got its name of Saka.

That place is now Kozakai-cho in the Hirata area of Izumo City. Through the years, the place name changed several times, but the character for sake was often used. A small shrine in the area, Saka Shrine, preserves the original place name, which is　another way the character for sake is pronounced. The shrine also goes by the name Matsuo Shrine, which is the name used for shrines throughout the country that enshrine the deity of sake brewing, Kusu-no-kami.

- - - - - Read more :
- source : www.japanesemythology.jp

Kusu no kami 久斯之神（くすのかみ）
another name for

. Sukunahikona Mikoto 少彦名命 / 少名毘古那神 Sukuna Hikona, Sukuna-Bikona .

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. Hibita Jinja 比々多神社 .
1472 Sannomiya, Isehara, Kanagawa


. Sakaori no Miya 酒折宮 .
Kofu 甲府市の東部

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Oomiwa Jinja 大神神社（おおみわじんじゃ）Omiwa Jinja
Sake no Kamisama 酒の神様 The Deity of Sake
In ancient documents, miki is also called miwa, and the deity Miwa no kami 三輪の神　is thus famous as the kami who presides over sake.
also known as Miwa Shrine, is a Shinto shrine located in Sakurai, Nara, Japan.
- source : gekkeikan.co.jp

. Shrine Omiwa Jinja 大三輪神社 .
- Introduction -

. shinshi 神使 the divine messenger .
of Matsunoo Taisha is kame 亀 a turtle.
and of Oomiwa Jinja it is hebi 蛇 the snake.


God of chief brewer of Sake brewery-Ikuhi Shrine
Why Miwa is being called as the birthplace of Sake? The answer can be found from the description in chronicles of Japan.
Ikuhinomikoto Takahashi 「高橋活日命（たかはしいくひのみこと」　
此の神酒は　我が神酒ならず　倭なす　
大物主の　醸みし神酒　幾久幾久」

"This Sake for God is not made by me
but it is made by deity of who creates Japan.
The glorious will last even after few generations."
- source : imanishisyuzou.com -

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Oosake Jinja 大酒神社 Osake Jinja - 大辟（おおさけ）神社、大酒明神
京都市右京区太秦東蜂岡町
Deities in residence
秦始皇帝、弓月王、秦酒公 兄媛命、弟媛命（呉織女、漢織女）
- source : bell.jp/pancho
tba


. Konohana sakuya hime 木花之佐久夜毘売 .
godess of Sake (and Mount Fuji)


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- - - - -　 H A I K U　 - - - -

There are shines named - - - Matsuo Jinja 松尾神社

dedicated to the haiku poet
. Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉 Haiku Poet

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SAKE, SHINTŌ AND DIVINE CONNECTIONS
Condensed Guide to Sake-Related Gods, Shrines, Rites, and Festivals
by Mark Schumacher and Gabi Greve　- (tba)


Sake 酒 -- known as Nihonshu 日本酒 or rice wine.
In olden days, sake was produced in the shrine’s Sakadono 酒殿 (wine hall). At religious ceremonies, the communal partaking of Miki 神酒 (another name for sake) is called Naorai 直会. The Naoraiden 直会殿 (or Noraidono 直会殿 or Gesaiden 解斎殿) is the name of the shrine building where priests retire after offering food and drink to the gods.
Various types of ritual sake -- e.g., Shiroki 白酒 (light) and Kuroki 黒酒 (dark) -- are typically presented as offerings at important festivals (such as the Niinamesai and Daijosai festivals). According to the Engi Shiki 延喜式 (Procedures of the Engi Era, 901 - 923 AD), divination was performed prior to production to determine what rice to use, and from what region to harvest. Dark sake was often made by mixing in the ashes of the Kusaki 草木 (type of arrowroot) or Utsugi 空木 (Deutzia scabra).

Inside the Shrine - Shintō Concepts, What’s What
. Mark Schumacher .


. Sake 酒 rice wine for rituals and festivals .


. Yokai Sake 妖怪 酒 and local monster legends .


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kannushi Shinto priest

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kannushi　神主 Shinto priest



- quote
saikan　斎館
Also kandachi 神館, shinkan 神館.

1　At Ise Jinguu 伊勢神宮, saikan refers to those who serve the shrine: the master of religious ceremonies, saishu 祭主; the chief priest, daiguuji 大宮司; the assistant priests, shouguuji 少宮司; lower rank priests, negi 禰宜; assistants to lower rank priests, gonnegi 権禰宜; and shrine administrators, guushou 宮掌.

2　A person involved in religious duties at a Shinto shrine. Also kannushi 神主, shinshoku 神職.

3　A purification hall where all priests, and at Ise Jinguu the head priestess as well, purify themselves prior to participating in any ceremony.
- source : JAANUS


. Shrine, Shinto Shrine (jinja　神社) .
- Introduction -


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- quote
Becoming a Shintō Priest or Priestess
Titles - Roles of Men & Women Serving Shrines
To work officially as a priest in modern Japan, individuals must pass examinations given by the Association of Shintō Shrines (Jinja Honchō 神社本庁) -- these tests are open to both men and women who want to become Shintō priests. But until modern times, there was no standardized certification or qualification system.
snip
Other Important Terms for Those Serving Shintō Shrines
Hafuri 祝. A term for Shintō priests, usually a rank beneath kannushi and negi. (Kokugakuin)
Hafuribe 祝部. One type of priest established under the ancient ritsuryō system. (Kokugakuin)
Kandachi 神館; place for Shintō purification rites, as well as a place for priests to go into seclusion for a set amount of time; also known as Saikan 斎館 or Shinkan 神館.
Kannushi 神主; generic term for shrine priests and those who perform religious duties at Shintō shrines; also known as Saikan 斎館 or Shinshoku 神職. Says the Kokugakuin University Encyclopedia of Shintō: "The kannushi was a mediator (nakatorimachi 仲執り持ち or 仲取持ち) between kami and humans, and served the kami on behalf of humanity. Sometimes the kannushi played the role of the kami or even acted as a kami to transmit the will of the kami to humanity."
Nai-Shōten 内掌典. Female attendants who assist the emperor in the performance of the annual Niinamesai ceremony 新嘗祭 (rice tasting ceremony), when the emperor offers the first fruits of each year's rice harvest to the gods and then eats a little himself.
Saikan 斎館; one who performs religious duties at Shintō shrines; aka Kannushi 神主 or Shinshoku 神職. Saikan also refers to a purification hall where priests purify themselves prior to participating in ceremonies. At Ise Jingū, the head priestess as well undergoes purification in the Saikan.
Shashi 社司. One who performs religious duties at higher ranking Shintō shrines.　
Shashō 社掌. Deputy priest, one rank below Shashi.
Shikan 祠官. Priest at low-level village and hamlet shrines; those serving so-called “people’s shrines” (Minsha 民社)
Shinkan 神館; see entry for Kandachi.
Shinkan 神官; general term for Shintō priest.
Shinshoku 神職; performs religious duties at Shintō shrines; aka Kannushi 神主 or Saikan 斎館.
Shishō 祠掌. Priest at low-level village and hamlet shrines; those serving so-called “people’s shrines” (Minsha 民社)
Shōten 掌典. Male clergy who assist the emperor in the performance of the annual Niinamesai ceremony 新嘗祭 (rice tasting ceremony).



Shintō Attire Among Clergy
The robes worn today by Shintō priests and priestesses are reportedly derived from gowns worn by the court and nobility in the Heian period (794 to 1185).

- more details and further LINKS
- source : Mark Schumacher


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- quote
How to Become a Shinto Priest
Shintoism is the original faith of the indigenous Japanese, involving the worship of various Gods, Spirits and demons called Kami.



Shintoism is rare outside Japan though it is gaining popularity outside Japan in some countries. For those who wish to devote themselves to Shintoism and become priests, here is a guide.
- source : www.wikihow.com


- Reference : English


. Shrine, Shinto Shrine (jinja　神社) - Introduction .


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宮一つ神主一人大吹雪
miya hitotsu kannushi hitori daifubuki

just one shrine
just one Shinto priest
super blizzard

Muramatsu　Azami 村松紅花


- - - - -  More haiku about the Shinto priests
- source : HAIKUreikuDB


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Kanayago Kami

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Kanayagogami 金屋子神 / カナヤゴガミ Deity of the Blacksmith
Goddess of Tatara
tutelary of mines, metals, and the techniques associated with them.


source :　たたらの話 - wakou-museum.gr.jp


Tatara-buki (buki, from fuki, means air blowing)
is an ancient Japanese method for manufacturing iron. The tatara process has a history stretching back more than one thousand years, being a method for fabricating iron unique to Japan built up through the unceasing efforts of our ancestors.
. Takadono tatara 高殿鑪 たかどのたたら .


金屋子神社 Kanayago Jinja


CLICK for more photos of the shrine  !

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The History of Tatara - Kanayago-Kami
Kanayago-kami (the deity Kanayago) is enshrined at tatara in the Chugoku mountains. While the main shrine dedicated to this deity (whose name is written with characters that literally mean “child of the metal worker") is located at Nishihida in the city of Yasugi, Shimane Prefecture. Devotion to Kanayago-kami is widespread, centered on the Chugoku region but extending from Kyushu and parts of Shikoku to the distant Kanto region and parts of Tohoku. The ritual deities celebrated at present are Kanayama-hiko-no-mikoto and Kanayama-hime-no-mikoto with origins in the Yamato line (see section 2.1.3 for background), but originally it was Kanayago-kami, more familiarly called “Kanayago-san” throughout the region. Worship of Kanayama-hiko and Kanayama-hime (male and female, respectively) dates almost certainly to early modern times. This is believed to have been aimed at increasing the authority of the shrines.

The story of Kanayago-kami is as follows:
"In the distant past, Kanayago-kami decided from the heavens to a place called Shiso-no-kori (Shiso County) in the province of Harima (in what is now southern Hyogo Prefecture, in the San'yo district). She taught the people there how to make iron, and made an iron kettle out of rock. Since then, that place has been called Iwanabe (“rock kettle”), which is in the vicinity of the town of Chikusa, Shiso County, Hyogo Prefecture. However, as there were no mountains nearby where she could live, Kanayago-kami declared,
“If I am to be the deity who rules the western reaches, I will proceed to the west and live in a suitable place there.”
So saying, she climbed on a white heron to travel to the mountains of Okuhida in Kurota in Nogi County of the province of Izumo (around Nishihida in Shimane Prefecture). The heron alit upon on a katsura tree to rest, and Kanayago-kami then taught the technique of making iron in that region to the members of the Abe clan."

Since then, Kanayago-kami has continued to be worshipped by the descendents of the Abe clan. The Abe clan involved itself not only with priestly affairs, but also with traveling around to instruct others in tatara techniques.

There are a variety of curious taboos associated with Kanayago-kami.
Among them:

Kanayago-kami hates dogs, ivy, and hemp.
She favors wisteria.
According to the legend in Hino County, Tottori Prefecture, a dog howled at Kanayago-kami when she descended from the heavens. The deity tried to escape by climbing a vine, but the vine broke. She was attacked by the dog and died as a result. The version of the story told in I'ishi County, Shimane Prefecture, is that, rather than ivy, she became entangled in hemp or flax and died. The legend in Nita County, Shimane Prefecture, holds that the ivy did indeed break, but she then grabbed onto a wisteria tree and was saved. She may be a deity, but in this humorous story she is a rather human character. Such legends are the reason why dogs are not allowed near tatara and hemp is not used for any tatara tools or equipment. Also, katsura trees are not burned in tatara because they are regarded as divine.

Kanayago-kami hates women.
Kanayago-kami is a female deity so she hates women. A murage 村下 (a chief engineer in metal forging) will not enter the tatara when his wife is menstruating. He shuts down his tatara temporarily just before and after his wife gives birth. If work is at a point that he cannot put it aside, it is said that he will not go home nor look at the face of his newly born child. It is also said that murage are especially strict about not getting into a bath if a woman has used it.

Kanayago-kami likes corpses.
The disciples of Kanayago-kami did not know what to do with their tatara when she died so suddenly. It is said that just as they were praying to and beseeching her for help, just when the iron could not be brought to birth no matter what they did, they received an oracle calling for them either to stand a dead body up against the tatara's four supporting pillars (Nita County) or bind the bones of a murage to the four pillars (the village of Yoshida, Shimane Prefecture). There similarly appears to have been no taboos about death in tatara in other locales, either. They apparently made coffins in tatara when a person died in Aki or Yamagata in Hiroshima Prefecture, while in Futami county in the old Bingo province (around Hiroshima today) people would carry a coffin around the tatara when holding a funeral.

Actually, it is unclear as to whether or not Kanayago-kami is meant to be a male or female deity, but in the tatara the deity has been said to be female. Masaya Abe, a descendent of the Abe clan and chief priest at Kanayago Shrine, writes,
“Kanayago-kami is usually held to be a female deity. However, that is because it was a woman who enshrined it. The deity was originally a youthful male.”
Details about Kanayago-kami turn up in various stories, including those related to such other deities as Yawata-kami, Ama-no-hiboko, Takuso-susano-no-mikoto, and Kanayama-hiko-no-mikoto. In all cases, Kanayago-kami was the patron deity of blacksmiths, worshipped from the start by people involved in metalwork. These artisans spread devotion to Kanayago to many locations, and the present form of that worship was probably created by the Abe clan.

Festivals are held at the shrine Kanayago-jinja in the spring around the middle of the 3rd month and in the autumn early in the 10th month, the dates being determined according to the Chinese zodiacal calendar. In the past, the Kanayago festival at Hida was an event to which tatara masters and blacksmiths would come from distant provinces, as well as from Izumo and the neighboring province of Hoki.
- source : www.hitachi-metals.co.jp

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source : facebook


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Kanayamabiko, Kanayamabime (Kanayama Hiko, Kanayama Hime)
According to Kojiki, these kami were produced from the vomit (taguri) emitted by Izanami as she lay dying following the birth of the kami of fire Kagutsuchi. An "alternate writing" relating the same event in Nihongi mentions only the kami Kanayamabiko. Both kami are considered tutelaries of mines, metals, and the techniques associated with them. They are enshrined at the Nangū Taisha (Nangu Taisha) in Fuwa District, Gifu Prefecture, as well as at numerous Kanayama and other shrines throughout the country.
- source : Nakayama Kaoru, Kokugakuin 2005


Kanayamahiko no Kami 金山彦神（かなやまひこのかみ）
は、日本神話に登場する神である。『古事記』では金山毘古神、『日本書紀』では金山彦神と表記する。金山毘売神（かなやまびめのかみ、金山姫神）とともに鉱山の神として信仰されている。

神産みにおいて、イザナミが火の神カグツチを産んで火傷をし病み苦しんでいるときに、その嘔吐物（たぐり）から化生した神である。『古事記』では金山毘古神・金山毘売神の二神、『日本書紀』の第三の一書では金山彦神のみが化生している。

神名の通り「金山」（かなやま、鉱山）を司る神で、嘔吐物から産まれたとしたのは、嘔吐物の外観からの連想によるものと考えられる。鉱山を司どり、また荒金を採る神とされ、鉱業・鍛冶など、金属に関する技工を守護する神とされている。岐阜県垂井町の南宮大社（金山彦神のみ）、南宮御旅神社（金山姫神のみ）、島根県安来市の金屋子神社、宮城県石巻市金華山の黄金山神社を始め、全国の金山神社で祀られている。
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !

Kanayama Jinja 金山神社　－ Fuwa, Gifu　岐阜
金属や鉱山(こうざん)の守り神として、崇敬されてきました。
その神が住まうのは、岐阜県西部(せいぶ)、不破(ふわ)郡垂井町(たるいちょう)。隣には「関ヶ原の戦い」が行われた決戦地、関ヶ原町(ちょう)があります。 そして、「伊吹(いぶき)おろし」という強い風をこの地域にもたらす伊吹山がそびえています。 そんな Tarui 垂井町に鎮座する南宮大社は、金属や鉱山の守り神、金山彦命- 金(かな)山彦(やまひこの)命(みこと) Kanayamahiko no mikoto をまつる、全国３０００社の総社でもあります。そのため奉納品や神事も、金属にまつわる珍しいものが たくさんあります。 しかし、なぜ金属の神をまつる総社(そうしゃ)がこの地にあるのでしょうか。 その由縁は、そびえたつ「二つの山」に隠されていました。
- source : graceofjapan

The clear water and wind down from Ibukiyama was suited for the metal forging craftsmen.


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Have you ever heard of Tatara?
Tatara was likely imported into Japan from Korea by way of Shimane Prefecture, and seeing as the San’in region is rich with titanium magnetite, a necessary ingrediant for iron production, it took hold here very early on in Japanese history. Way back in ancient Japan–specifically 713ad, two years after the compilation of the Kojiki (originally ordered by Emperor Temmu) was completed, Empress Gemmei ordered the compliation of the Fudoki. While the Kojiki is like a history book (which we would now consider a book of Shinto mythology), the Fudoki were like encyclopedia, conducted in each province to chronicle geography, plant and animal species, the lifestyles of the people, and significant historical events (many of which we would now refer to as myths). Most of the Fudoki no longer exist, but the Izumo-no-Kuni-Fudoki remains mostly in tact. Therefore, we know a lot more about life in 8th century Izumo than about any other part of Japan. It includes many details about tatara.

..... There is a patron god of Tatara, though many of the popular local myths say she is a goddess. This is Kanayago, the kami that is revered throughout Japan for teaching craftsmen how to making iron. Having particular influence over Western Japan, she wanted to settle in the mountains there, so she descended upon a particular spot in southwestern Yasugi where a heron perched upon a katsura tree, a very brief hike up the hill from Kanayago-jinja, the head shrine of all Kanayago shrines.



... As numerous as Kanayago shrines are (especially in the Chugoku region), many of them make donations to this head shrine.

A short walk across from the entrance to the shrine is the folk tradition hall dedicated to the shrine and legends about Kanayago. It’s small, but well designed and with lots of information and 3D displays.

..... if you’re a fan of Hayao Miyazaki and Ghibli studio movies, then you likely are already familiar with tatara after all. Iron Town in the 1997 film Princess Mononoke was based on Okuizumo (not to be confused with Higashiizumo)!
- source : Buri-Chan


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source :　www.kanayago.co.jp/yurai


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Kanagayo, Kanayako Kami 金屋子神（かなやごかみ、かなやこかみ、等）
とは、中国地方を中心に、鍛冶屋に信仰される神。一般には女神であるとされるが、男神とする説もある。金山彦・金山媛や天目一箇神と同一、もしくは何らかの関係がある神とされるが、全く別神とする説もある。
金屋子神の総本社とされる島根県安来市広瀬町西比田にある金屋子神社には、以下の伝説がある。
... 、伯耆国日野郡宮市の住人 下原重仲が著した『鉄山秘書』にも詳しく書かれている.
... 金屋子神社より西方約40kmに石見銀山があり、当地に佐毘売山神社（さひめやまじんじゃ）があるが、この『佐毘売』は、金屋子神の別名ではないかと言われている。『さ』、『さひ』は鉄を意味していると推測されている。
... 尚、饒速日尊や物部氏と関係が深いとされる三瓶山は古来、佐比売山と呼ばれていた。また、三瓶山の西約5kmに、石見国一宮で、石上神宮と表裏一体であると言われる物部神社が鎮座する。

また、岡山県英田郡西粟倉村に伝わるタタラ唄に『金屋子神の生まれを問えば、元は葛城 安部が森』との言葉が残る。
Abe-ga-Mori in Okayama 安部が森
... more
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !



CLICK for more photos !

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金屋子神は秘伝の製鉄技術
- source : furusato.sanin.jp

- Reference : 金屋子神社
- Reference : Kanayago shrine Shimane

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. 出雲風土記 Izumo Fudoki .

. sumigama 炭竈 と伝説 Legends about charcoal kilns .

. Shrine, Shinto Shrine (jinja　神社) - Introduction .


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. Japanese Legends - 伝説　民話　昔話 – ABC-List .


............................................................................　Hiroshima 広島県　
高田郡 Takada district

Kanayago san 金屋子さん Deity of Blacksmiths
This deity dislikes anything connected to giving birth. Therefore after a birth a woman is not allowed to come near the Tatara 鑪. Even now she is not allowed to come near a charcoal kiln.

. Takadono tatara 高殿鑪 hut for working with metal .



............................................................................　Shimane 島根県　
飯石郡 Iishi district

Kanayago sama no tatari カナヤゴ様のたたり the curse of the Kanayago deity
Kanayago is 炭焼きの神・火の神・鉄山の神 the deity venerated by charcoal makers, protecting from fire and in mines.
she is venerate way back in the valley of Ibaradani 井原谷.
The deity tends to curse people who do not keep the rituals, pee in her direction or cut off branches from sacred trees.
Once she cursed the family of 山口恭一家 Yamaguchi Kyoichi.


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- reference : Nichibun Yokai Database -
21 to explore カナヤゴガミ Kanayagogami (02)

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