Enthronement of the Japanese emperor

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Enthronement of the Japanese emperor 即位の礼
Enthronement of Emperor Naruhito in Tokyo Imperial Palace in 2019
Country	Japan
Inaugurated	After the enthronement of Emperor Kanmu in 781, the original form of the present ritual was completed.
Previous event	2019 Naruhito
Participants	Emperor Imperial Family Heads of the three branches of government Foreign heads of state Domestic invitees
Website	The Imperial Household Agency Cabinet Public Relations Office, Cabinet Secretariat

Emperor Akihito wore the sokutai at the enthronement ceremony in November 1990.

The enthronement of the emperor of Japan (即位の礼, Sokui no rei) is an ancient ceremony that marks the accession of a new monarch to the Chrysanthemum Throne, the world's oldest continuous hereditary monarchy. Various ancient imperial regalia are given to the new sovereign during the course of the rite.

Enthronement ceremonies[]

The enthronement ceremony consist of five sub-ceremonies, which are conducted as constitutional functions (国事行為) based on Article 3 of the Constitution of Japan as follows:^[1]

Presentation of the Three Sacred Treasures[]

Presentation of the sword Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi and the Yasakani no Magatama at the enthronement of Emperor Akihito, 1989

The first is the simplest, Kenji-tō-Shōkei-no-gi (剣璽等承継の儀), it takes place immediately after the death or abdication of the preceding sovereign. The successor is formally presented with boxes containing two of the three items that compose the Imperial Regalia of Japan: (1) a replica sword representing the sword Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi (lit. "Grasscutter Sword") (草薙劍), though the original is allegedly enshrined at Atsuta Shrine in Nagoya; and (2) the Yasakani no magatama (八尺瓊曲玉), a necklace of comma-shaped stone beads. The third and most important of the items of the regalia is the mirror Yata no Kagami (八咫鏡), which is enshrined in the Ise Grand Shrine as the go-shintai (御神体), or the embodiment of the Sun Goddess herself. It is permanently housed in the shrine, and is not presented to the emperor for the enthronement ceremony. Imperial messengers and priests are sent to this shrine, as well as to the tomb-shrines of the four emperors whose reigns immediately preceded his, to inform them of the new emperor's accession.

The three items of the imperial regalia were originally said to have been given by the Sun goddess, Amaterasu, to her grandson when he first descended to earth and became the founder of the imperial dynasty. Unlike other monarchies, Japan has no crown in its regalia. In the 2019 enthronement ceremony, the treasures were presented to the new emperor in the morning of his ascension date. The visits to the Ise Grand Shrine by Imperial messengers and priests, as well as to the tombs of the previous four emperors, continued on as in past enthronements.

The first audience after the enthronement[]

The second is called Sokui-go-Choken-no-gi (即位後朝見の儀). The new emperor will meet the three chiefs of the tripartite political system as the representatives of citizens for the first time.

Proclaiming enthronement at the main palace[]

Takamikura used for the Enthronement.

Banzai banner used for the enthronement ceremony.

The third part of the ceremony, called Sokuirei-Seiden-no-gi (即位礼正殿の儀), is the ritual to proclaim and congratulate the enthronement. It is the core part; the last such ceremony was held on 22 October 2019 for Naruhito.

This ancient rite was traditionally held in Kyoto, the former capital of Japan; beginning in 1990, it is done in Tokyo. The 1990 enthronement of Akihito was the first to be covered on television, and have Imperial Guards in political traditional uniforms. It was done indoors, with the elevated stand placed inside the Imperial Palace complex. Only part of the ritual is public, and the regalia itself is generally seen only by the emperor and a few Shinto priests. First came a three-hour ceremony in which the new emperor ritually informed his ancestors that the enthronement is about to take place. This was followed by the enthronement itself, which takes place per tradition in an enclosure called the Takamikura, containing a great square pedestal upholding three octagonal pedestals topped by a simple chair. This was surrounded by an octagonal pavilion with curtains, surmounted by a great golden Phoenix.^[2] At the same time, the empress, in full dress regalia, moved to a smaller adjacent throne beside her husband's. Traditional drums were, at this point of the ceremony, beaten to start the proceedings.^[3]

The new emperor proceeded to the chair, where after being seated, the Kusanagi, Yasakani no Magatama, privy seal and state seal were placed on stands next to him. A simple wooden sceptre was presented to the emperor, who faced his prime minister standing in an adjacent courtyard, representing the Japanese people. The emperor offered an address announcing his accession to the throne, calling upon his subjects to single-mindedly assist him in attaining all of his aspirations. His prime minister replied with an address promising fidelity and devotion, followed by a "three cheers of Banzai" from all of those present. The timing of this last event was precisely synchronized, so that Japanese around the world could join in the "Banzai" shout at precisely the moment that it was being offered in Kyoto or in Tokyo.^[2]

This moment of the rite ends with the firing of a 21-gun salute by the Japan Self-Defense Forces. After this, both seals and the two regalia items are carried off the imperial pavilion.

Celebration parade[]

Celebration parade at Aoyama, Tokyo, 2019

The fourth, called Shukuga-Onretsu-no-gi (祝賀御列の儀), is the motorcade procession. The emperor and empress, now back to wearing formal wear, are then both driven through midst Tokyo toward Akasaka Estate by the state limousine (御料車) to acknowledge the cheers of the ordinary citizens on the major streets of the capital.^[4]

In the case of Naruhito, the parade was postponed to 10 November 2019, with consideration about the enormous damage of Reiwa 1 East Japan Typhoon.^[5] As the state limousine, a specially coach worked Toyota Century Royal was prepared.^[6] In this ceremony, Imperial Household Agency, Imperial Guard Headquarters (皇宮警察本部), Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Police band and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Music Corps participated.^[7]

Court banquet[]

The fifth is the official banquet, called Kyouen-no-gi (饗宴の儀), which is the occasion to announce and celebrate the enthronement, and to receive the felicitations of the guests to be held within Tokyo Imperial Palace.^[5]

Another banquet[]

A banquet is hosted by Prime Minister and spouse in Tokyo to thank the foreign heads of State and other dignitaries for visiting Japan, and to foster a greater understanding of Japan by presenting displays of traditional Japanese culture.^[5][8] This banquet is an event out of the scope of constitutional functions (国事行為).

The Daijō-sai[]

The Daijō-sai of Emperor Akihito in 1990

The Daijō-sai (大嘗祭) is a special religious service conducted in November after the enthronement, in which the emperor thanks peace of mind and rich harvest to the Solar deity Amaterasu (天照大神) and surrounding deities, and pray for Japan and its citizens. From Shinto viewpoint, the emperor is believed to be united to deity Amaterasu in a unique way to share in her divinity. In general, the Daijosai is considered as a kind of thanksgiving harvest festival, in the same way as Niiname-sai (新嘗祭) is conducted annually on 23 November, a public holiday of Labor Thanksgiving Day. Actually, in the year the Daijō-sai is held, the Niiname-sai (新嘗祭) is not held.^[9]

The emperor and empress both perform the Daijosai ceremony in November after ascending the throne. It is only performed once during their reign. Akihito performed it in November 1990 and Naruhito on 14 November 2019. The emperor offers gifts such as rice, kelp, millet and abalone. Then he reads an appeal to the gods and eats the offering and prays. The emperor and empress perform the rites separately. It takes about 3 hours. Over 500 people are present including the Prime Minister, government officials and representatives of society. It originates as a Shinto rite from at least the 7th century. It is held as a private event by the Imperial Household, in order that it does not violate the separation of church and state. A special complex with over 30 structures (大嘗宮, daijōkyū) are built for the event. Afterward, they are accessible to the public for a few weeks and then dismantled. In 1990, the ritual cost more than 2.7 billion yen ($24.7 million).^[10]

Details
First, two special rice paddies (斎田, saida) are chosen and purified by elaborate Shinto purification rites. The families of the farmers who are to cultivate the rice in these paddies must be in perfect health. Once the rice is grown and harvested, it is stored in a special Shinto shrine as its go-shintai (御神体), the embodiment of a kami or divine force. Each kernel must be whole and unbroken, and is individually polished before it is boiled. Some sake is also brewed from this rice. The two sets of rice seedlings now blessed each come from the western and eastern prefectures of Japan, and the chosen rice from these is assigned from a designated prefecture each in the west and east of the country, respectively.

Two thatched roof two-room huts (悠紀殿 yukiden, lit. East-region hall) and (主基殿 sukiden, lit. West-region hall) are built within a corresponding special enclosure, using a native Japanese building style that predates and is thus devoid of all Chinese cultural influence. The Yukiden and Sukiden represent the east and west halves of Japan, respectively. Each hall is divided into two rooms, with one room containing a large couch made of tatami mats at its center, in addition to a seat for the emperor and a place to enshrine the kami; the second is used by musicians. All furniture and household items also preserve these earliest, and thus most purely Japanese forms: e.g., all pottery objects are fired but unglazed. These two structures represent the house of the preceding emperor and that of the new emperor. In earlier times, when the head of a household died his house was burned; before the founding of Kyoto, whenever an emperor died his entire capital city was burned as a rite of purification. As in the earlier ceremony, the two houses represent housing styles from western and eastern parts of Japan. Since 1990, the temporary enclosure is located at the eastern grounds of the Imperial Palace complex.

Ritual items from the enthronement of the Japanese emperor

After a ritual bath, the emperor is dressed entirely in the white silk dress of a Shinto priest, but with a special long train. Surrounded by courtiers (some of them carrying torches), the emperor solemnly enters first the enclosure and then each of these huts in turn and performs the same ritual—from 6:30 to 9:30 PM in the first, and in the second from 12:30 to 3:30 AM on the same night. A mat is unrolled before him and then rolled up again as he walks, so that his feet never touch the ground. A special umbrella is held over the sovereign's head, in which the shade hangs from a phoenix carved at the end of the pole and prevents any defilement of his sacred person coming from the air above him. Kneeling on a mat situated to face the Grand Shrine of Ise, as the traditional gagaku court music is played by the court orchestra the emperor makes an offering of the sacred rice, the sake made from this rice, millet, fish and a variety of other foods from both the land and the sea to the kami, the offerings of east and west being made in their corresponding halls. Then he eats some of this sacred rice himself, as an act of divine communion that consummates his singular unity with Amaterasu-ōmikami, thus making him (in Shinto tradition) the intermediary between Amaterasu and the Japanese people.^[11]

Gallery[]

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  Emperor Kōmei

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  Mockup, layout plan for pavilions in the Daijōkyū for the Daijōsai ceremony in November 2019.

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  Kareta, Special Parade of the Ceremonial Horse-Drawn Carriages 2009

References[]

Further reading[]

• Saitō Katsuhisa (October 21, 2019). "Pomp and Pageantry: Emperor Naruhito's Enthronement Ceremony". nippon.com.
•  [ja] (2019). 大嘗祭 [Enthronement of the Japanese emperor]. Chikuma Shinsyo. Chikuma Shobō. ISBN 978-4480099198.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

• Robert S. Ellwood, The Feast of Kingship: Accession Ceremonies in Ancient Japan (Tokyo: Sophia University, 1973).
• D. C. Holtom, Japanese Enthronement Ceremonies: With an Account of the Imperial Regalia (Tokyo: Sophia University, 1972).
• John Breen and Mark Teeuwen, New history of Shinto (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010), pp. 168–198.

External links[]

• Video of Emperor Naruhito's Enthronement Ceremony