In 1945, the year that war World War II had ended, all religious organizations that had enjoyed the careful protection of nation had been required self-sustainability under the situation that the U.S.-led Allied forces had had the initiative of all decision-makings.
Since then, shrines and temples had headed down the path of existence as the religious corporation with independent accounting system like industrial firms.
At the same year, Ise Grand Shrine had announced the discontinuation of the 59th Sengu that they had planned 4 years later.
In fact, they had planned to put the public fund given in past times to practical use for the sake of Sengu though it had been decided officially that the termination of public funding for Ise Grand Shrine.
But still it had been said to be far from enough.
The reason had been that the public fund had been provided poorly and fallen behind in war time.
“What people feel about Ise Grand Shrine with no support from our nation?”
Can we collect money for Sengu in Japanese life that even daily food is hard to come by?
Can we perform the 59th Sengu?
…..Can Ise Grand Shrine keep the position as “the shrine dedicated to the goddess of all Japanese people?”
Perhaps, some might have had an internal conversation with themselves about like this.
It could have been easily imagined that Ise Grand Shrine had faced the crisis since the Warring State period.
Fortunately, Japan had entered a remarkable post war reconstruction.
And Ise Grand Shrine could have managed to collect the donation for Sengu.
Thanks to both the public fund given before the end of the war and the donation from the ordinary people, they could have secured the vast amount of money for Sengu.
Finally in 1953, Ise Grand Shrine had performed the 59th Sengu.
Naiku, on October 2, and Guku, on October 5.
It had been 24 years after the 58th Sengu.
Incidentally, it is generally said that Japanese full-scale post war reconstruction had come in 1950-1954.
The 59th Sengu had just been performed in the midst of that.
What would people have really thought the resurgence of Sengu of Ise Grand Shrine?
It had been the times when even black-and-white TV hadn’t become widely used, and the sources to gain information for Japanese people had been radio or small talk.
Of course they couldn’t have seen that with their own eyes.
But still, there might have been many people who could have been encouraged by the blight news of “the shrine dedicated to the guardian goddess of all Japanese people”.
