F E S T I V A L ／ FEST-242

Ikemura Sacred Rope Renewal (Kamimura–Ikemura Michikiri Village-Boundary Rite)

池村のしめ縄掛け替え（上村・池村の道切り行事）いけむらのしめなわかけかえ

This is the rope-renewal rite of Ikemura, part of the "michikiri" (road-cutting) village-boundary tradition that survives most strongly in the Kamimura and Ikemura settlements of the Saiku area in southern Meiwa Town. At the village entrance—the crossroads marking its boundary—a fresh sacred straw rope (shimenawa) is hung in place of the old one to form a barrier against plague and misfortune entering from outside. Locals call it "Shimenawa-san" or "the Mountain Deity," and "Hassaku" after the time of year it is held. The ritual site also enshrines the Mountain Deity, an Atago talisman, and a Koshin stone, all sharing the intent of keeping evil out of the settlement. Where the rope once spanned the road, today it is increasingly wound around a roadside tree or stone marker so as not to obstruct car traffic—a humble straw barrier that carries the nationwide custom of michikiri into the present.