Abstract
This paper studies the history of the Naritasan Monzen-machi（ 成田山門 前町）festival in Narita City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Devotees and laymen visit temples and shrines in Monzen-machi for religious and tourism purposes. The Naritasan Monzen-machi is located on the 800m approach from JR Narita station to Shinshōji temple which belongs to the Shingon sect and is one of the most sacred sites in the Kantō region. The biggest annual event of the year in Monzen-machi is the Narita Gion Festival held in July. This paper examines the transition of festivals in Naritasan Monzen-machi, focusing on the early modern period and the modern period, and discusses how the local people changed their thoughts and behavior to overcome the pre-modern period.
In the pre-modern period, the Monzen-machi town festival was called Mt. Yudono Gongensai influenced by mystic Buddhism and Shugendō, which was a mixture of Kami and Buddhas. In the modern period, it transformed into a complex of Buddhist ritual, Gione（ 祇園会）, conducted by the temple and annual event, Gionsai（ 祇園祭）, which was arranged by townspeople under the political order of the separation between Kami and Buddhas. In particular, I will focus on the changes in the meaning and function of the “Gion”（ 祇園）festivals that have been introduced since the modern era. Through research on Monzen-machi, we divide the transition of festivals in the city into three stages: changes in the early modern period, reconstruction in the modern period, and contemporary development. We also clarify various aspects of continuity and discontinuity between the pre-modern period and the modern period.
