FEST I V A LS. “ O D E R N J apan is a cou n try of t rad i ti on al festival s ; acts of worsh ip th e people cal l th em , and th ey certai n ly have their fou ndatio n i n a so as religious observance , bu t far general revel ry , feasti ng and ‘ a éze rej oici ng are concerned , they presen t al l the featu res of f , or even of a carn ival . An n ually or bi en n ially th e tu telary d eities of a particular parish are taken ou t for an ai ri ng and the w hole of th e d e fl parish ion ers partici pate i n the pic ni c . That is th e most acc u rate n iti on that can be briefly given of t he m a fia ” , to wh ic h Western " “ wri ters have al ready devoted so many pages of d escri ption . The worshi p of the dei ties and ' “ ma fsu rz f . the ad mi n i stratio n of State a fairs used to be synonymou s Both were called , and t he both con ti n u e to be so called by the vu lgar , though d isti nctive term s now fi nd a place i n vocabu lary of the literate . I f , the n , rel igiou s ri tes performed by the sovereign w i th i n th e pre ci n ct s of the palace i nsu red the successful co nd u ct of natio nal bu si n ess , th e sam e pri nciple ' pro mpted the peopl e to i nvoke , by si m i lar m eans , heaven s i n fl uence i n th e cau se of house hold prosperity , i nd ustrial success , and i nd ivid ual h appi ness . H istory does not i nd icate th e origi n of th e idea that to carry the god s i n tri u mphal procession was the most fi tti ng form of popu lar d evotio n . Bu t hi story does show that sackcloth and ashes were never c red ited with any attractions i n the eyes of th e supernatu ral powers , and that the J apanese . even i n very as . early ages , j udged the brighter aspects of l i fe to be as pl easan t to i m mortal s to mo rtal s ’ We obtai n that knowledge of th e nation s mood i nc id entally and not very agreeably . A n nal ' ‘ As i sts ma l m m i ts . tel l u s , not of the glories of th e , bu t of abu ses early as t he eighth cen tu ry , the spri ng and au tu m n festivals of th e North Star had to be offici ally i n terd icted becau se of “ i m moral l icen se on the part of the d evotees , and a si milar prohi bition became n ecessary a h u n ’ d red years later when the people s m ethod s of ask i ng for bl essings had beco me so extravagan t that there stood i n every street i n Kyoto a “ treas u ry decorated w ith pictu res of th e “ Seven God s of Fortu ne , and a pai r of i mages before wh ic h i n cen se was bu rned and flowers were offered amid ci rcu mstances that s hou ld so meti mes have repel led rather tha n propi tiated th e - f d ei ties . I ndeed , any on e visi ti ng the great sh ri n es of I se to day , wi ll be s u rprised to i nd th at Lai s opens her doors to th e pilgri m al most with i n sigh t of th e sac red groves , and that to accept her i nvi tation d oes not disq ual i fy h i m i n h is own eyes , no r i n the eyes of any one else , for . _ the su bsequent ach ievemen t of h is piou s pu rpose A si ngle act of lu stration restores 2 3 1 2 3 2 J A P A N his w as h is moral as ell physical pu rity , and with suc h an easy remedy i n S ight , t h e si ns of the i s flesh seem only transiently h u rtfu l . I t not to be supposed , however , that u nsightly excesses are obtrusive featu res of the O n the contra ry , they are for the most part conspic uous ' . by thei r absence H istory s mention of them notes the exception , not the rule , and is referred to here merely as i nd icating that the gala spi ri t presided at these festivals twelve or fi fteen centu ries ago j ust as promi nen tly as i t presid es now . The people enjoy and exercise a ll the freedo m of hosts at these big picn ics . H av ‘ i ng d uly p rovided for the deity , or dei ti es , i n whose honor th e d isplay i s pri marily organ i z ed , the parishioners consider themselves at l iberty to en tertai n any other gu ests they please to su m mon from the real m of spi rits ac o or the region of allegory . For the c m m o dation of each pri ncipal and each accessory ”fil ms/1 11 dei ty there is a sacred palanqu i n , a I t is a sh ri ne on wheels ; a sh ri ne covered u nrleco rated with black lacquer , save that the i nsign ia of the i n mate are blazoned i n gold on the panels of the doors , and that the ends of the pil lars and roof- tree are wrapped i n fi nely chased and richly gilt copper . Before and beh i nd the sh rine stand "on "of - ar m P Y a m - A e s LA ING s sex . rose red lacquer ; a bal ustrade of the same color encircles i t , and o n the roof perches a fli golden phoen ix wi th outspread wi ngs . The e g y of the deity i s placed wi th i n th is shrine i n sacred secl usion , and to fi fty men weari ng sacerdotal vestments the d u ty of beari ng the ' is i n trusted . Bu t there is a d i fference i n the peopl e s treatment of thei r own special guests . These are not enclosed i n the gloom of a sh ri ne ; they are mou n ted on h igh , over o f looking the m u lti tud e merrymakers and looked u p to by them , and they ride each on a car d d s/1 1 f i ts of gentle motion or ), a magni ficen t and colossal a fai r , d i mensions and gorgeousness affordi ng a measu re of the piety and prosperity of the pari sh . Described d d s/1 13 - i n si m pl est o utli ne , the i s a rectangul ar wooden house mou n ted on a fou r wheeled i s wagon . As for i ts details , they defy descri ption . From sil l to eaves i t a mass of elabo ' - o- ll cl rate carvi ng and rich decoration . B rill ian t brocades , portly sil k tassels , snow wh ite g w - - w and reaths of gold and silver flo ers fi ll th e i ntervals between deeply ch isel led diapers , fligh ts J A P A N 2 3 3 of phoen ixes , processions of tortoises and l i nes of dragons . I m med iately u nder the roof , and th u s raised some fifteen feet above the street , a broad platform affords space for fi fty or si xty people , and spri ngi ng fro m pyram idal d rapery at the cen tre of the artisti cal ly carved ridge pole , a taperi ng pi ll ar of great heigh t su pports a canopied bracket for the figu re of the sacred d ash i s guest to who m th e is ded icated . I t i mpossi bl e to co nvey i n words any adequate idea of the grace of proportion and sobriety of grandeu r someti mes attai ned i n th e construe As effi ies tion and ornamentation of these cars . for the gu ests whose g are th u s carried aloft , they belong , for th e most part , to th e galaxy of national heroes or the catalogu e of i nd u strial and com mercial symbol s . Each parish natu rally has i ts own particular pets and its own ' special obligations . For exampl e , the festival of Sano , one of Tokyo s great bien nial carn ivals , is h eld i n a year designated by the sign of l the cock and th e mon key i n th e two cycles .