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Show Y0SH1H1T0 HI THE SHRINES OF HIS ANCESTORS Unique and Picturesque Procession Accompanies Japanese Emperor to the Sacred Tombs. TJ.TIYAM ADA (Ise), Japan, Nov. 20. ! Emperor Yoshihito arrived here today from Kioto to pay homage before the grand ancestral shrines at Uji and Ya-mada. Ya-mada. Accompanied by the court he left Kioto on a special tram and arriving at Yamada entered the improvised imperial im-perial lodge. The grand ancestral shrines at Ise consist of the "Inner" shrine and the "Outer" shrine at the town of Yamada. The former, or inner shrine', is dedicated to the great imperial ancestress, Ami-torasu Ami-torasu Omikami, and the latter to Toy-ouke-no-okami, a deity of rice and cereal. ! In olden days access to those ancestral shrines was "strictly forbidden to all persons, per-sons, however high in rank they might be, except the emperor himself. Even the heir apparent to the throne could not pass the portalt of the Bacred build- The ordinary worshiper may proceed to the main gate, but no further. Proceed on Foot. On the way thither are two-torii. The members of the imperial family and im- 1 perial messengers who come to worship at the shrines must alight from theii I carriage or horse at the second torii and thence proceed afoot the rest of the way to the shrines. Inside the board walls are double fences of wooden pillars, which form inner enclosures. Each or these enclosures enclos-ures has four torii-shaped gates on i either side. The gates are thatched ; with stray and have wooden doors. An-! An-! other high enclosure separates the main building from the outer premises. The 6acred interior contains the holy shrine with the sanctuary, or holy of holies of the imperial ancestor, and a treasure halL The "Divine Park." The compound of the shrines is ex-, ex-, tensive. It is almost enshrouded from 1 both sunshine and rain by a thick grove of ancient pines and cryptomeria trees, most of them having survived many cen-; cen-; turiea. The inner precinct, which is called the "TJhvine park,1' contains a pretty miniature lake. Beyond rises a hill finelv wooded with cryptomerias, camphor trees and maples. The sacred ; buildings are reconstructed every twen-; twen-; j ty-five years. ; Unique Procession. At the appointed hour the emperor ; : left his temporary headquarters and pro ; ceeded to the inner shrine at Uji, accompanied ac-companied by his retinue. The proces- . sion was unique and picturesque. Arriv- , ing at the gate of the outer wall, passing t through the first and second torii, the emperor alighted from his carriage and talked the rest of the way. j In front of the emperor the chamber-Jain chamber-Jain slowly advanced, holding the sacred ' , sword and gem, and behind came an-i an-i other chamberlain, who held over the i emperor a great umbrella made of Teed. ' j A cordon attached to the top of the ' umbrella was held by another chamber-1 chamber-1 lain. Still another chamberlain carried . a box containing an imperial baton. ,' i Arriving at the second outer fence; . the emperor was offered hemp and salt' by the Shinto priests, wherewith his ma.- i esty purified nimself, according to the 1 Shinto ritual. ; Purifies Himself. At the gate of tlje third outer fence the emperor washed his hands with wa- "? tr to purify himself again before en-tering en-tering the shrines. In the meantime the r chief officiating priest and juuior priests had opened the door of the main shrine and had placed the offerings consisting of silk fabrics, thread and hemp on the stands before the altar, n Presently the imperial procession arrived ar-rived at the gate of the inner fence, where the crown prince, princes and princesses of the blood and all other members of the retinue stopped and took their positions outside the gate. The emperor, attended only by the ritualists anl chamberlains carrying the sacred sword and gem and holding the umbrella and by a chamberlain carrying the box containing tne imperial baton, proceeded through tne gate on to the steps in front of the main ahrine. Worships Ancestors. All attendants stopped at the foot of the steps and sat upon the floor. The emperor ascended the steps and entering enter-ing the hall took his seat at the front : of the shrine. Then he silently worshiped wor-shiped the great imperial ancestress. The crown prince, princes and princesses of the blood and other members of the im perial retinue offered worship from their respective positions outside. After returning to the temporary headquarters the emperor started to the outer shrine at Yamada to worship before be-fore the spirit of Tovouke-no-okami, the goddess of food. The imperial procession proces-sion and the ritual proceedings were quite the same as during the imperial visit to the innei shrine. Imperial Visits Rare. The imperial visit to the great shrines is a rare occurrence. K very emperor and empress makes personal visit to the shrine only once in life, namely, aftei the coronation ceremony. Imperial messengers mes-sengers are sent to the shrines several times a year to pay homage to the deities on behalf of the emperor and empress on the occasion of state functions func-tions or ceremonies. At the time of great national events, swh a? an outbreak out-break of war between the empire and a foreign country, a special messenger is sent to announce berore the deiti.-s the declaration of war and to pray for the ; divine protection and as,Man.-.e of the spirit or the great imperial ancestress. The shrines at Ise ate not, only held in great respect bv the imperial court, but are held in adoration by the who!-Japanese who!-Japanese people. Half a million of pilgrims visit the shrines every year, chiefly in winter and spring, wnen the country folk have more leisure thaD at other seasons. Believe in Tradition. The ma.iority of artisans in Tokio and still more in Osaka and Kioto, which are nearer Ise. beiieve that thev may find difficulty in gaining a livelihood unless they invoke the Protection of the tutelary tute-lary goddess at Ise by performing pilgrimage pil-grimage at least once in their life, and the peasants of Japan are even more devout believers in this tradition. From this motive many people take(''re to save money with a view to providing them with traveling expen; in making their pilgrim astes to Tee temples hefore they close their worldly existence. Those who cannot pay a visit to the shrines once in their life are declared to be most unfortunate beings. The emperor and court will return to Kioto tomorrow. |