A is a sacred religious

palanquin The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the el ...

(also translated as portable

Shinto shrine A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion. The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

followers believe that it serves as the vehicle to transport a deity in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

while moving between main shrine and temporary shrine during a festival or when moving to a new shrine. Often, the ''mikoshi'' resembles a miniature building, with pillars, walls, a roof, a

veranda A veranda (also spelled verandah in Australian and New Zealand English) is a roofed, open-air hallway or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front an ...

and a railing. Often the Japanese honorific prefix is added, making .

History

The first recorded use of ''mikoshi'' was during the

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capita ...

. Among the first recorded uses was when in the year 749, the deity

Hachiman In Japanese religion, ''Yahata'' (八幡神, ancient Shinto pronunciation) formerly in Shinto and later commonly known as Hachiman (八幡神, Japanese Buddhist pronunciation) is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements f ...

is said to have been carried from

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an independent agency of the United States government within the executive branch, charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It is also task ...

to worship the newly-constructed ''

Daibutsu or 'giant Buddha' is the Japanese language, Japanese term, often used informally, for large Japanese sculpture, statues of List of Buddhas, Buddha. The oldest is that at Asuka-dera (609) and the best-known is that at Tōdai-ji in Nara, Nara, N ...

'' at

Tōdai-ji is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Nanto Shichi Daiji, Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Nara, Nara, Japan. The construction of the temple was an attempt to imitate Chinese temples from the much-admir ...

."Usa City Tourist Navigation"
Retrieved 6 June 2024 As the head shrine of all

Hachiman shrines In Japanese religion, ''Yahata'' (八幡神, ancient Shinto pronunciation) formerly in Shinto and later commonly known as Hachiman (八幡神, Buddhism in Japan, Japanese Buddhist pronunciation) is the Shinbutsu-shūgō, syncretic divinity of arch ...

in Japan,

Usa Jingū , also known as , is a Shinto shrine in the city of Usa in Ōita Prefecture in Japan. Emperor Ojin, who was deified as Hachiman-jin (the tutelary god of warriors), is said to be enshrined in all the sites dedicated to him; and the first and ear ...

Ōita Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Ōita Prefecture has a population of 1,081,646 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 6,340 km2 (2,448 sq mi). Ōita Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northwest, K ...

, Kyushu is said to be the birthplace of ''mikoshi''.

Shapes

Typical shapes are rectangles, hexagons, and octagons. The body, which stands on two or four poles (for carrying), is usually lavishly decorated, and the roof might hold a carving of a phoenix.

Festival and flow

During a ''

matsuri Japanese festivals, or , are traditional festive occasions often celebrated with dance and music in Japan. The origin of the word ''matsuri'' is related to the ; there are theories that the word ''matsuri'' is derived from meaning "to wait (for ...

'' (Japanese festival) involving a ''mikoshi'', people bear the ''mikoshi'' on their shoulders by means of two, four, or (rarely) six poles. They bring the ''mikoshi'' from the shrine, carry it around the neighborhoods that worship at the shrine, and in many cases leave it in a designated area, resting on blocks called ''uma'' (horse), for a time before returning it to the shrine. Some shrines have the custom of dipping the ''mikoshi'' in the water of a nearby lake, river or ocean (this practice is called ''o-hamaori''). At some festivals, the people who bear the ''mikoshi'' wave it wildly from side to side to "amuse" the deity (

kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...

) inside.

Methods of shouldering

The most common method of shouldering in Japan is . Bearers chant and may or may not toss and shake the ''mikoshi''. Other methods include: * is one famous way of shouldering observable at the Asakusa Sanja Festival. The shout is "say ya, soi ya, sah, sorya ... etc". The ''mikoshi'' is swayed rapidly, up and down and a little to the right and left. * "Dokkoi , ドッコイ " is seen in Shonan in

Kanagawa is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...

Prefecture. This shouldering style usually uses two poles. The ''mikoshi'' is moved up and down rhythmically, and more slowly than in the "Edomae style". One shout is "dokkoi dokkoi dokkoi sorya" and there is a song called a "Jink , lively song". * Another one is "Odawara style , 小田原担ぎ " observed in

Odawara is a Cities of Japan, city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,482 and a population density of 1,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Odawara lies in the Ashigara Plains, in ...

(next to the

Hakone is a List of towns in Japan, town in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the town had a population of 10,965, and total area of . Hakone is a notable spa town and a popular tourist destination due to its many onsen, hot springs being within view of ...

). This is a peculiar way of shouldering in which multiple ''mikoshi'' meet and run (Holy Dash). The shout is "oisah;korasah/koryasah" and there is a song called a "Kiyari", a chant traditionally sung by workmen while pulling a heavy load and also by firemen. The bearers do not sway the mikoshi. * In this "united" style, the ''mikoshi'' uses the full width of the road, moving from side to side and turning corners at full speed.

References

* Sokyo Ono, William P. Woodward, ''Shinto – The Kami Way'', Charles E. Tuttle Company, Tokyo 1992,
Basic Terms of Shinto
Kokugakuin University, Institute for Japanese Culture and Classics, Tokyo 1985

External links