Saiō

A 斎王 or itsuki no miko was an unmarried female member of the Japanese Imperial Family, sent to Ise to serve at Ise Grand Shrine from the late 7th century until the 14th century. The saiō's residence, Saikū, was about north-west of the shrine. The remains of Saikū are situated in the town of Meiwa, Mie Prefecture, Japan. According to Japanese legend, around 2,000 years ago the divine Yamatohime-no-mikoto, daughter of the Emperor Suinin, set out from Mount Miwa in Nara Prefecture in search of a permanent location to worship the goddess Amaterasu-ōmikami. Her search lasted for 20 years and eventually brought her to Ise, Mie Prefecture, where the Ise Shrine now stands. Prior to Yamatohime-no-mikoto's journey, Amaterasu-ōmikami had been worshiped at the Imperial Palaces in Yamato. According to the Man'yōshū (The Anthology of Ten Thousand Leaves), the first saiō to serve at Ise was Princess Ōku, daughter of Emperor Tenmu, during the Asuka period of Japanese history. Mention of the saiō is also made in the Aoi, Sakaki and Yugao chapters of The Tale of Genji, as well as in the 69th chapter of The Tales of Ise (Ise Monogatari). In the 13th century, Jien recorded in the Gukanshō that during the reign of Emperor Suinin, the first High Priestess (saiō) was appointed for Ise Shrine. Hayashi Gahō's 17th-century Nihon Ōdai Ichiran is somewhat more expansive, explaining that since Suinin's time, a daughter of the emperor was almost always appointed as high priestess, but across the centuries, there had been times when the emperor himself had no daughter; and in such circumstances, the daughter of a close relative of the emperor would have been appointed to fill the untimely vacancy. The role of the saiō was to serve as High Priestess at Ise Shrine on behalf of the Emperor, to represent the role first set out by Yamatohime-no-mikoto. Three rituals a year were conducted at the Shrine in which the saiō prayed for peace and protection. In June and November each year, she journeyed to the Shrine to perform the Tsukinamisai Festival.