User:Bensculfor/tsukimachitō



A tsukimachitō (月待塔) is a monument used in Japanese folk religion. On specific nights of the lunar calendar month, people gather at the tsukimachitō to eat, drink and perform religious rites while waiting for the moon to rise. These rites were done to worship Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, the shinto god of the moon.

The groups that would gather at the tower are called kō, often translated as "confraternities".

Types of Tsukimachitō
Tsukimachitō come in several forms, depending on which night of the lunar calendar people gather at the monument. These can happen on the 17th jūshichiya (十七夜), 19th jūkuya (十九夜), 22nd nijūniya (二十二夜), 23rd nijūsanya (二十三夜).