The jichinsai ceremony is multifaceted – not only is it a protection for the workers who will be building, but a way of atoning for the plants/animals that will die or be killed because of the construction. Since we had to cut down the giant maple – which I still feel horribly guilty about – it was important to me to recognize the tree’s sacrifice for my comfort. Not to mention the annual cicada that appear every year that live in the ground where my bedroom will soon be.