The Study of the Ritual Ceremony of Rice Cultivation in the Village of Low Wetland : A Case Study on Endo, Nishikanbara County, Niigata Prefecture

In this paper, from the perspective of clarifying aspect rice cultivation rituals surrounding the Ta-no-Kami. I would like to clarify what is on the minds of those who receive benefits from the lagoon and the disaster in the village society of low wetland. There have been few detailed reports on the rice cultivation ritual in this area, and the impression that the consciousness of the ritual and faith has thinned out taken root. However, in fact, it has become clear that faith of the itinerant of the Ta-no-Kamiand the accompanying rice cultivation ceremony has existed in this area strongly. First, in the ritual ceremony surrounding the Ta-no-Kami in the Endo village, community relies Mizu-mochi-aze (ridges of mud), which features rice cultivation in this area and the willow of the deep involvement. Second, the Ta-no-Kami in Endo clearly has an itinerant personality, and it is that the tradition that it comes from the Yama who points around the common area is revealed. The people of Endo believe that the Ta-no-kami is close to them, and we can see the strong faith that they prayed for a good harvest of the year