also: そくえ
ritual impurity from death or blood
Archaic term from Shinto and pre-modern Japanese culture, referring to a state of uncleanliness caused by contact with death, childbirth, menstruation, etc. Not used in modern everyday language.
In old texts, contact with death or childbirth was called 'shokue' (ritual impurity).
Alternate reading; less common than しょくえ.
Compound of 触 (contact) and 穢 (impurity). The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the term is associated with Shinto concepts of ritual pollution.