Oku-noto no Aenokoto

Aenokoto (Oku-noto no Aenokoto) is an agricultural ritual handed down in the Oku-noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture, a precious folk event registered as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. An exceedingly rare Shinto rite in Japan, conducted household by household, in which the "deity of the rice fields" is invited into the home and courteously entertained, it conveys to this day the faith of the people of Noto, who have lived together with rice cultivation.

In "aenokoto," "ae" is said to mean "hospitality" and "koto" to mean "festival." The most distinctive feature of this event is that the invisible field deity is treated as if a real, present guest. Each year on December 5th, the "welcoming" ceremony is held, in which the master of the house welcomes the field deity from the harvested fields into the home, guides the unseen deity to the bath while speaking to it, and offers a feast in hospitality. Then on February 9th of the following year, the "sending" ceremony is held to see the deity return to the fields.

The field deities are said to be a married pair and traditionally to be blind, so the master offers each dish while carefully explaining it. These movements carry gratitude for the harvest and prayers for an abundant harvest the following year. This simple ritual, quietly conducted by the family alone, vividly preserves the archetype of Japan's agricultural culture, which gave thanks for nature's blessings and lived together with the deities. Oku-noto no Aenokoto is a precious intangible cultural heritage of which the world can be proud, embodying reverence for the unseen.