Since the end of the Heian period, the Yamashina family has inherited the "Yamashina School of Emondo," a family profession in Kyoto that is responsible for the tailoring and wearing of court attire for the nobility. Tokichika Yamashina, the young head of the family, who is in his 30th generation since the founder, will unravel the occasional events that have taken place at the Imperial Court and in the society of the nobility, as well as the culture that has been handed down through the ages, along with costumes and ancient documents remaining in the Yamashina family.
The New Year according to the old lunar calendar was the busiest time of year in the imperial court.
After the start of spring according to the lunar calendar and the New Year, the days gradually begin to lengthen, and we start to feel the warmth of spring. In modern times, due to societal trends, most people probably celebrate the New Year according to the Gregorian calendar. However, I still want to experience the arrival of spring in accordance with the calendar, and in recent years I have become more conscious of the period after the New Year according to the lunar calendar.
The New Year according to the lunar calendar was the busiest time of year at the imperial court. While many events, both large and small, were held during the Edo period, the New Year according to the lunar calendar alone accounted for about one-third of the total, demonstrating the great importance placed on welcoming the new year. This time, I would like to introduce a part of that tradition.
In Yamashina-ryu style cypress fans, plum blossoms, bamboo, and flowing water are often depicted on the front, and artificial flowers made of silk thread, shaped like plum and pine trees, called "itobana," are attached to the tips of the main ribs. Nowadays, they are often held with a spiral thread (ninaito) wrapped around them, but when opened, they are large enough to cover the face.
Diaries record that Yamashina Tokikuni, the head of the Yamashina family during the late Muromachi period, and his retainers were enthusiastic practitioners of "Tatebana," considered the origin of ikebana (flower arrangement). A large pine tree was erected as a Yorishiro (object of worship) where a deity resided. During the Muromachi period, the imperial court held events such as linked verse gatherings on the festival day of Sugawara no Michizane, hanging a statue of Tenjin, and arranging flowers. Next year marks the 1125th anniversary of Sugawara no Michizane's death, and a special exhibition titled "Kitano Tenjin" is scheduled to open at the Kyoto National Museum in April of this year. (© YAMASHINA)
The "Utakai Hajime" (New Year's Poetry Reading Ceremony) is a rare imperial event that has been passed down through generations.
One of the New Year's court ceremonies that is broadcast on television and can be seen is the Imperial New Year's Poetry Reading Ceremony. This year, Prince Hisahito also contributed a poem for the first time. Until the Edo period, it was held in a building called the Kogosho, and the Emperor and his subjects all attended in formal attire. Each poem is recited and presented with a unique intonation, a process called "hikō," and there are rules regarding the roles and intonation of each reciter.
Currently, the Emperor's waka poems are recited three times, but until the Edo period, it was customary to recite them seven times. It can be said that this is a rare event that has been continuously passed down as an imperial ceremony, even though the format has changed.
This waka poem, recorded in the "Kototsugu-kyo Ki" (Diary of Yoshitsugu), was composed on January 19, 1565, at the Imperial Court's New Year's gathering. The poem, titled "Springtime Phenomena," likens the Emperor to the North Star, stating, "As is the example of your reign, the star remains unmoving in the north, and how many springs will pass?" (© YAMASHINA)
In the Edo period, at the imperial court, on the fifth day of the New Year, the Emperor would personally present tobacco pouches and folding fans as New Year's gifts to his close retainers in the Otsunegoten (main palace). In such private ceremonies, the Emperor apparently responded in his usual relaxed attire, wearing a hakama (traditional Japanese trousers) and an okinkoji (a type of crown).
This crown was used by Emperor Ninko in the late Edo period and is called the "Okinkoji Crown." It was a crown that the emperor wore on a daily basis. The long, hanging part at the back of the crown, called the ei, is folded and placed against the part at the top of the crown called the kinshi, and then sandwiched in thick cardboard covered with gold leaf. It was customary for members of the Yamashina family to work on it inside the palace at the end of the year, and after it was placed in the Naishidokoro (Imperial Household Agency) for a year to be purified, it would be worn by the emperor for the following year.
The upper level of the Otsune-goten, which was the Emperor's daily living space, contained the Kenji-no-ma, where the sacred sword and imperial seal, symbols of the imperial throne, were enshrined, and the Unryu Nishiki fabric was displayed in front of it. The ink inscription on the wrapping paper shows the name of the Takada family, who were responsible for sewing the costumes and furnishings that the Yamashina family had provided for generations.
"Sagicho" was a court ceremony that also had ties to the Yamashina family.
Now, the New Year's court ceremony that was particularly closely associated with the Yamashina family was Sagicho. (Although it is often written as "Sagicho" today, it was written as "Sanmariuchi" at the time.) Let's take a look at what it was like from our ancestors' diaries.
"Kototsugu-kyo Ki" (Diary of Tokugawa Ieyasu), entry for January 14, 1565 (Eiroku 8).
``Two hundred and eighty pieces of bamboo from Yamashina Oyakugo have been handed over to Kanshu-ji Temple, Norito Aizoe has been handed over to this side, Noriyoshi's request has been made, Osawa Uhei Daifu, Hikojuro, Yojiro and Tota have been transferred to Kinura, and 10 pieces have been transferred to Kinura.''
It is known that 280 bamboo poles were transported from Ooyake-go in Yamashina, where the Yamashina family's territory was located, to be used in the Sagicho festival. The retainers prepared these poles and presented 10 of them to the Imperial Court. There were also specific rules regarding the wording of the letter that the Yamashina family sent to the ladies-in-waiting at that time. The Emperor's first calligraphy of the year, called an Okissho, was burned along with the bamboo, and the Sagicho festival was apparently a lively affair with people waving sticks and playing music. Incidentally, Kyoto Tachibana University now stands on the site of the former territory in Ooyake. A section of the university grounds is planted with bamboo, and the history of the Yamashina family and the local bamboo is introduced there.
This is a type of decorative battledore decorated with a painting depicting the "Sagicho" festival, and is called a "Sagicho battledore" (partial view). It was used as a celebratory gift among court nobles and feudal lords. (© YAMASHINA)
A document recording the annual events of the Yamashina family during the Edo period states that bamboo used for the Sagicho festival at the Imperial Palace was delivered from Oya Village in Yamashina-go on January 12th. The document mentions 36 large bamboo stalks and 248 small bamboo stalks, indicating that a considerable number of bamboo stalks were needed.
This article introduces New Year's customs that were practiced in the homes of court nobles.
So, what kind of things did court noble families do during the New Year? We can learn a part of it from the Yamashina family's "Annual Events Record" from that time. Looking at our ancestors' diaries, they first purified themselves by bathing in water in the early morning of the 1st and then visited the Naishidokoro (Imperial Palace). The "Annual Events Record" also mentions "the offering of the first fruits to the Naishidokoro" at the hour of the rat, suggesting that the year began with a visit to the Naishidokoro, where the sacred mirror was enshrined, which held a similar significance to the first shrine visit of the year for court nobles.
The text describes drawing fresh water from a well in the early morning to use for offerings, and offerings of washed rice and sacred sake to the Kasuga deity at the family shrine within the estate, as well as to the Toshitoku shelf placed in the auspicious direction of the year. It also mentions terms that are still used today, such as "Okurabiraki" (opening of the storehouse), "Oiwaimeshi" (celebratory meal), "Kakedai" (hanging sea bream), and "Okagamibiraki" (opening of the mirror).
In addition, on the 4th, there were entries such as "New Year's greetings from the Imperial Court's top textile weavers" and "New Year's greetings from Takada Izumo-no-jo, the Imperial Court costume maker," indicating that the day had been set for New Year's greetings from various related parties. "Imperial Court textile weavers" were weavers from Nishijin who were in charge of textiles for the Imperial Court, and "Imperial Court costume makers" were craftsmen in charge of sewing the costumes.
Among the weavers in the Nishijin area, only six families belonging to the Imperial Household Agency, which was overseen by the Yamashina family, were authorized to supply textiles to the Emperor and the Imperial Court. This document, submitted to the Yamashina family, the head of the Imperial Household Agency, in 1841, outlines ten articles of agreement exchanged among the Imperial Household Weavers. It is a historical document that offers insight into the sense of morality and spirit of those who served as the highest-ranking officials at the time.
Every year on January 19th, a ceremony called "Shikibocho" (ceremonial knife preparation), in which a crane presented by the Shogun was butchered using chopsticks and a knife, was demonstrated over approximately two hours in the east of the Kogosho (Imperial Palace). The Osumi and Takahashi families, who were in charge of the Imperial Kitchen (Mikurishidokoro), took turns every other year and were traditionally rewarded with cotton. It was customary for court music and dance to begin in the Shishinden (Imperial Palace) as a signal that the knife ceremony was complete, and the audience would watch while enjoying dishes made from the butchered crane along with sake. (© YAMASHINA)
In the early hours of the 7th, the song "Natsuna Hayashi" is performed and "Asameshi Kayu" (rice porridge served as breakfast) is served, so there was also a custom of singing while cutting the seven spring herbs and eating nanakusa kayu (rice porridge with seven herbs).
However, since the head of the household was attending daily ceremonies at the Imperial Court where he worked, it is thought that he entrusted the management of household affairs to his retainers. I believe that such ceremonies were only possible because there was a well-established household management system for the court nobles, which was sometimes referred to as a government office.
This year in Kyoto, the 400th anniversary of the Emperor's visit during the Kan'ei era will be celebrated.
This year in Kyoto, the 400th anniversary of the Emperor's visit to Kyoto during the Kan'ei era will be celebrated. In 1626, Emperor Go-Mizunoo accepted an invitation from Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu and traveled from the Imperial Palace to Nijo Castle, where various events were held over five days. Tokifusa, the young head of the Yamashina family at the time, also participated in the procession on horseback. It is said that as many as 9,000 people participated in the procession, and a part of it is scheduled to be recreated this December. The visit led to many daimyo and their associates from all over the country entering Kyoto, and the large volume of orders for related goods that were placed in a short period of time is thought to have brought about the subsequent rise of Kyoto's industries and the creation of new culture.
This is a shikishi (decorative paper board) by Yamashina Kotobuki, bearing the poem: "In the winter cold, the ice that forms remains as it is, yet it does not melt, like the white threads of water." It is written in a unique calligraphic style called Teika-yō, which imitates the handwriting of Fujiwara no Teika. The scattered writing style and spatial composition of the waka poem written on the shikishi is also one of its highlights.
The Tokugawa era brought stability and maturity to Kyoto's culture, which continues to this day, but in modern times, we may not often have the opportunity to be aware of the benefits it has brought. As I help with the reenactment of the procession, and through the related events that will take place over the next year, it looks like this will be a year in which I can take another look at Kyoto during the Edo period.
Yamashina Tokichika / Young head of the Yamashina school of kimono. Born in Kyoto in 1995, he completed his master's course at the Graduate School of Human and Environmental Studies at Kyoto University. He is the 30th successor to the Yamashina family (former nobles) who have passed down the tradition of preparing and wearing "shozoku", the attire worn at the Imperial Court for generations. He performs kimono at the three imperial festivals "Kasuga Festival", "Kamo Festival", and "Iwashimizu Festival", as well as the "Reiwa Grand Ceremony". He also appears in various media, gives lectures to companies, government agencies, and cultural organizations, plans exhibitions, and conducts customs research for history programs. He is involved in a wide range of activities to spread the tradition of Imperial Palace culture, serving as the representative director of the Yamashina Yusoku Research Institute and a researcher at the Doshisha University Imperial Court Culture Research Center.
Photos by Azusa Todoroki (bowpluskyoto)
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The 30th young head of the Yamashina School of Imondo, Yamashina Genchika…
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