季節をめぐるお菓子Confectionsfor All Seasons

Summer / About the confections and their origins

“Imochiokuri and Oharae”

いもち送りと大祓 イラスト

For the farmers, eliminating pests and diseases was an urgent need

In ancient times, what threatened rice cultivation the most were typhoons, harmful insects, and diseases. Nowadays, it is possible to take countermeasures regarding the latter, but in the past the spread of leafhoppers or rice blight could cause great damages and famine. Of course Omi was no exception, so the farmers used to pray to reduce the number of these disasters. They still do it today.

Fukai Takeomi is the chief priest of the Oshima Shrine and Okutsushima Shrine in Omihachiman. As a child he had the task of going to the seedbed to check that there were no leafhopper eggs on the seedlings. Leafhoppers often lay eggs in large quantities. This is a serious problem for modern farmers too, since they do not always they manage to act in time to eliminate the eggs.

Rice blight also occurs frequently. Rice blast fungus mixes with the water droplets of the rice plants, generating the disease. Low pressure and prolonged rains enable the activity of this fungus which destroys leaves and stems, even causing the plants to wither and die. One of the reasons why Shinto rites were held throughout the country to eliminate harmful insects and diseases is precisely the need for farmers to preserve the harvest.

The Imochiokuri rite

In the past, after the rice
was planted,
the Imochiokuri
rite was held at Oshima Shrine
and
Okutsushima Shrine. For a short time,
beginning around 1967-68, this ritual ceased to be practiced, only to be revived in 1980.

Torches are used during the ritual, as is the case for other festivals in the Omihachiman area. Torches 2.5 meters high are made by farmers using bamboo taken from the mountains and rice straw taken from the paddy fields. The fire from torches and paper lanterns illuminates the darkness along the ridges between the rice fields.

The torches have the task of “collecting diseases”. These “diseases” are then carried to the lower part of the river and “thrown away”. In recent years, the damage caused by harmful insects has decreased, but on the other hand natural disasters are increasing. It is therefore important to teach the new generations the importance of prayer and rituals also as a means of protection from the immense destructive power of nature.

The chi no wa for the great purification rite is also made together

One month after the end of the Imochiokuri, preparations begin for the rite of great purification called Nagoshi no harae. During this rite, which is held throughout the country, people purify themselves of the impurities accumulated in half a year.

Chi no wa (a big ring made out of grasses) is typical of Nagoshi no harae. Nowadays, there are many shrines that buy the rings directly from specialized suppliers, but here at the Sasaki Shrine there is still the custom of making it together with the believers who live in the area.
First they go to cut the reeds and wild rice with sickles, then combine them together. In just three hours the chi no wa is complete. Finally, believers go through this fragrant ring, praying to the gods.

In La Collina Omihachiman – where Taneya has its own head office – there are small rice paddies too. Here, the employees grow organic rice.
The ingredients for the confectionery all come from agriculture. Knowing the fatigue of cultivating and savoring the joy of harvesting: this leads to knowing and understanding the origins of Taneya’s confections.