＊Misogi performed at Takigawa Shrine

*Takigawa Shrine is located in Kawaragaya, Mishima City, this shrine is dedicated to Seoritsuhimenomikoto, a deity enshrined in the shrine. In the old days, it was called Takigawa Fudo, a place of folk belief, andIt is also said to have been a place of misogi (purification) where water worship and ascetic practices were practiced.

Origin of the Shinmai Festival

Every year on October 17, the first harvest of the year is offered to Amaterasu Omikami at the Ise Jingu Shrine. On the same day, the “Jinnae-bushi-Matsuri” is held at shrines all over the country to celebrate the “Jinnae-Matsuri”. The “Shinnaesai” is held at the end of the year’s harvest to express gratitude for the year’s blessings.

Mr. Yatabe, the chief priest of Mishima Taisha Shrine, says that Japanese people used to be particularly conscious of “spring” and “autumn” because rice planting takes place in spring and harvesting takes place in autumn. As evidence of this, in spring, there are festivals to pray for a bountiful harvest, such as the “Prayer Festival” and the “Rooster Festival,” and in autumn, there are festivals to give thanks for a bountiful harvest, such as the “Shinto Tasting Ceremony” and the “Shinnae Festival. Japanese people have sensed the flow of the year through the cycle of rice, and have offered prayers and thanks to the gods in the process. Rice cultivation, which began in the Yayoi period, seems to be the starting point of Japanese people’s faith.

The “Shinnae-sai” (New Taste Festival), which has continued since the Asuka Period, is a court ritual in which the Emperor makes an offering of the first harvest of the year to the gods in the three halls of the palace, and thanks the gods for their favor, after which the Emperor himself partakes of the food.

*Mishima-taisha Shrine has traditionally held three other festivals in April, August, and November to pray for and give thanks for a bountiful harvest. The August festival is called “regular festival” and is considered the “most important festival” among the 151 festivals held in a year.

*Morio Yatabe, Priest of Mishima-taisha Shrine

After graduating from university, Mr. Yatabe served as a priest at Ise Jingu Shrine for four years from 1995, and then at Mishima Taisha Shrine from 1999. In addition to his daily duties such as cleaning and morning prayers, he has been preparing the shrine so that many visitors can visit the shrine comfortably.

Hakone Nishi-Foothill Mishima Vegetables and the New Year’s Tasting Ceremony

The festival of the tasting of new harvest is a very important festival for growing vegetables in the western foothills region to express gratitude for a bountiful harvest.

“The history of vegetables has been woven into the Japanese people’s memories long before rice cultivation penetrated the country, and it must be deeply engraved in their memories. It is a natural way to give thanks to the gods by offering them foods grown in the land.”

“It is especially important, of course, to serve local products that are deeply related to the origin and formation of the Izu Peninsula, and in this sense, the dedication of Hakone Nishifooth Mishima vegetables must have been very much appreciated by the gods.”
said Yatabe.

From rice planting to harvesting, the Japanese sensed the cycle of the year through sensory agriculture, and have always valued the “invisible. Even in harvesting, they never think that it was achieved only by their own efforts. Mishima Taisha Shrine is a place where such faith and gratitude for the “harvest” throughout the year are spun from generation to generation. We will continue to dedicate Hakone Nishi-Foothill Mishima vegetables to offer our gratitude for the year ahead.