Could you tell me why people perform a ceremony for sanctifying ground when they build a house?
Because people have believed from ancient times that in Japan there was a guardian deity protecting that local land.
If people suddenly turn up the soil of the land where a deity exists, will they offend the deity?
People thought that it would be rude to disturb the deity without a prior approval.
Are they asking the deity for its permission to use the land before digging the soil?
That is right. They greet the deity by purifying the land with sacred salt and sacred sake.
After the Shinto priest recites a congratulatory prayer and purifies the land, then sickle, spade and hoe are used.
Jichinsai, a ceremony for sanctifying ground, is also called Tokoshizume-no-matsuri, a ceremony to appease the seed-bed, isn't it?
Yes, by purifying the land where a guardian deity is enshrined, people obtain the building permission.
I don't remember seeing this kind of ceremony for sanctifying ground other than in Japan.
The ceremony for sanctifying grounds might not have originated in Japan, but it may be safe to say that it is a ceremony unique to Japan now.
I see. I would really see the ceremony up close.
I have bought a land. Do I have to perform ceremony for sanctifying ground by any means?
No, you don't have to. There is no problem if you build a house without performing the ceremony.
Then, why some people perform a ceremony for sanctifying ground?