Kagura Dance

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. Yamata no orochi 山田の大蛇 huge monster serpent .
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Kagura Dance　神楽


http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/master/kagura/1-art01.html

Kagura Dance and Music are part of the Shinto Rituals for the Gods, relating to ancient legends and were performed by priests and shrine maidens.
Now in some rural areas it is counted as a form of local art (minzoku geinoo) and preformed by the villagers themselves during the annual shrine festival. Some are are more like festive folk-drama. The area of Chichibu is especially known for its local kagura.

Some performances last more than one day. Even children perform in local kagura performances (kodomo kagura 子供神楽).

Masks made from Japanese paper (washi) are used and most old costumes are very precious.

There are various kagura types throughout Japan, see below.

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The Mikagura 御神楽 style of Shinto is also known as kagura and is very similar to the court music of gagaku. The original dance was performed by the goddess Ama no Uzume no Mikoto to entice out the sun goddess into the world.

With time, Buddhist song-texts were introduced and the hichiriki, kagurabue, wagon and the shakubyoshi all came to be the instruments routinely used to accompany the songs. Only fifteen songs out of the repertoire are now performed and generally last about seven hours. The present performance tradition dates from the Meiji times.

The all male singers are divided into two groups; the motokata and the suekata, each with its own set of songs and a principal singer who accompanies himself on the shakubyoshi until the other singers and instruments enter at a point known as tsukedokoro. The song texts include some of the oldest known Japanese poetry.

The style is in general slow and solemn with the voice pure and unembellished. The notation is a system of neumes known as hakase, modelled on the notation for Buddhist chant, dating from the 12th century. The sumifu system has been in use since Meiji.

The Satokagura 里神楽 style of Shinto is distinct from the court kagura and instead features older ritual styles similar to that performed at Shinto shrines. This style of music involves the preparation of a shinza or place of worship to which the gods are invited. A priestess or miko is central to the ritual which is generally performed on winter evenings.

Satokagura can be subdivided into groups. One of the groups, Izumo kagura　出雲神楽, occurs throughout Japan, especially in the West and its main features are a series of dances performed with torimono (various ritual objects held by the dancers), followed by a noh play.

Another group, Ise kagura　伊勢神楽　 is found in Kyoto and in the North and involves a ceromony known as yutate in which warm or boiling water is sprinkled about.

Edo kagura　江戸神楽　 is found in Eastern Japan, especially Tokyo and is similar to Izumo kagura but is also influenced by mibu kyogen (a type of Buddhist morality play).

Other sub-groups include the Shishikagura 獅子神楽　 which includes a lion dance (shishi-mai) and is now found in many forms throughout Japan and Yamabushi kagura　山伏神楽　 which was originally performed by mountain ascetics. It embodies the eclectic, folk religious worldview of the Shugendo tradition.

With time, Satokagura took on a more theatrical form when special dance-halls were built especially for this style known as kaguradono. Accompanying instruments are generally found to be stick drums and transverse flutes. The rhythms are strong and lively.
http://www.digital-daydreams.com/enc/world/show_country.php?id=32


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Iwami Kagura 石見神楽



As a result of the evil deeds of her brother Susano-wo, the sun-goddess Amaterasu-omikami hid herself in the Cave of Heaven.
Susano, having been chased from Heaven, wandered across the continent of China until he crossed into the land of Izumo (modern Shimane prefecture) and came to the River Hi, where he met Princess Inada and an old couple wailing and lamenting.

When Susano asked why they were so upset, he was told that every year the terrible eight-headed serpent Yamato-no-Orochi appeared, and that it had already devoured seven of their daughters and would soon come to take their remaining child, Princess Inada. Susano soon formulated a plan and made the Orochi drink some poisoned sake brewed from various nuts, and then killed it whilst it was drunk.

He then recovered from the monster’s tail a sword that he named Ame-no-murakumo-no-tsurugi (Treasure Sword of Heaven) and presented it to his sister Amaterasu. He then married Princess Inada.
http://www.city.hamada.shimane.jp/en/kagura/orochi.htm

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Miko Kagura 巫女神楽
a traditional dance in honour of the gods, performed by the maidens and priestesses (miko) of a shrine. Also called Miko Dance (miko mai 巫女舞).

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Orochi Kagura, performed in the Izumo area
Orochi is a giant serpent which threatenes the local population. Yamata no Orochi （八岐大蛇、八俣遠呂智、八俣遠呂知　ー　ヤマタノオロチ), a Serpent with eight heads is killed by the Deity Susa-no-O (Susano)、as we have seen in Iwami Kagura.



© Jake Davies / http://www.japanvisitor.com/ikj/ji/242.html


. Yamata no Orochi 八岐の大蛇 Serpent with eight heads .
papermachee figures from Tottori

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Matsumae Kagura 松前神楽, Hokkaido



The kagura style of dance and music is performed in the course of worshiping Shinto gods and this type of performance is best represented by the Matsumae kagura. It is believe to have been performed first in 1674 at Matsumae castle, formerly Fukuyama, being officially appointed to Lord Norihiro, the 6th head of the Matsumae clan.

Kagura of this style is performed mainly at shrines in the south of Hokkaido. The fact that the Matsumae Kagura is traditionally performed and transmitted by the Shinto priests alone has contributed to the refinement of its artistry. Among the kagura dances performed by ordinary people is the Sanjo Kagura which is a variation of the kagura from Hachimangu Shrine in Sanjo city in Niigata prefecture.

Also known as Dai Dai kagura, this particular style of performance was adopted by the Hokkaido Shrine, the Sumiyoshi Shrine in Otaru, the Muroran Hachiman Shrine, the Nopporo Shrine and the Takikawa Shrine among others, though kagura is no longer performed at the Takikawa Shrine.

Kagura of this sort was developed after the settlers who came from the Sanjo area invited performers of ancient court music from their town of origin to dedicate their performance to the shrine. The Dai Dai kagura is performed by ordinary people of the community unlike the Matsumae Kagura which is performed by priests.
http://www.pref.hokkaido.jp/kseikatu/ks-bsbsk/digest/chapter_9.html

dai dai kagure, daidai kagura ダイダイ神楽 / 太太神楽 / 太々神楽



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Dai Kagura, Daikagura 太神楽 Edo Daikagura

Dai Kagura is a remnant of the activities of Shinto dance troupes in the Edo Period, who brought Kagura (God-Music) performances to the local people who could not worship at Ise Shrine. The troupes who traveled around Western Japan throughout the year gathered on annually on the afternoon of December 24 at the Masuda Shrine of the main actor to perform all their acts as offerings.
The performers used some special words with different meanings, for example:
fukareru - to be turned down
gomui - bad
gosha, go sha - five yen
hitotsubo - 1,8 liter, 1 sho
mochi - police
mokoi - good


source : 2005. Mie Prefecture

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What is “Edo-Daikagura”? Who is Senmaru?

Senmaru is a performer of “Edo-Daikagura”. “Edo” is an old name of Tokyo. “Daikagura”, it is very difficult to explain it.
Reportedly, the original purpose of Daikagura was to serve as a talisman for the people, chasing away evil on behalf of Jingu (the grand Shintoism shrines). Thus, Daikagura was originally a very sacred and serious performance. Today, the performance is becoming people’s entertainment. Senmaru wears a “kimono” and performs Japanese traditional tricks.
- source : senmaru.info/english... -

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太神楽（だいかぐら）は古くより神社に伝わる「伎楽(ぎがく)・散楽(さんがく)」の一部で、伊勢神宮・熱田神宮の二ヶ所が発祥の地と伝えられています。
江戸開府と共に出府し、獅子舞を連れて氏子の家々を廻りお祓いをする風習が生まれました。神様に代わって悪魔祓いの獅子舞を演じたことから、代神楽（だいかぐら）とも呼ばれていました。
神様への「奉納」・氏子への「祈祷」等が主な内容だった太神楽は、寄席の出現に伴い「神事芸能」から「舞台芸能」へと変化をし、獅子舞の余興として演じていた曲芸は大衆への娯楽を提供する「寄席芸能」へと発展してきました。
江戸時代に始まったこの「太神楽曲芸」は、明治・大正・昭和と時代に合わせた技を取り入れ、平成の今へと受け継がれている伝統芸能です。
太神楽は「舞」・「曲芸」・「話芸」・「鳴り物」の四つの柱から成り立っています。
http://www.daikagura.jp/kaisetsu.html

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Locating Transcendence in Japanese Minzoku Geinô:
Yamabushi and Miko Kagura

Lisa Kuly
Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 2003

Contemporary minzoku geinô (minzoku geinoo, folk performing arts) in Japanese society is associated with the matsuri, or festival. Community members, such as workers and students, practise and perform various types of minzoku geinô in preparation for local festivals.

However, a look at the history of minzoku geinô reveals that originally its practitioners were marginalized members of society, who used ecstatic expression to perform various rites such as healings, exorcisms, and blessings.

Furthermore, the attitude toward ritual specialists was often negative; indeed, shamanistic practices were prohibited during the Meiji period (1868-1912). In response to social attitudes, ecstatic performers of Japan's premodern period negotiated their expressive powers in a variety of ways in order to survive.

This paper introduces the reader to the typology of minzoku geinô that involves ecstatic performance presented by yamabushi, male mountain-dwelling ascetics, and miko, female shamans generally associated with Shinto shrines. Moreover, the discussion in this paper illustrates how ecstatic performance changed throughout history to the extent that it is now seldom performed by marginalized ritual specialists.

Performers of contemporary minzoku geinô are accepted members of society. Furthermore, both the performers and the audience of minzoku geinô are affected by the transformative nature of ecstatic expression.
http://www.fl.ulaval.ca/celat/acef/kulya.htm

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- - - - - Further Links in the Daruma Museum:

. Mask of Ko-Daruma for Satokagura 　
小だるまの面

. Kagura at Kirishima Shrine 霧島神宮 .


Kagura, by Kids Web Japan

Iwami Kagura 　　石見神楽

Tengai : Canopy and Iwami Kagura

Musical Instruments (01)

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source : edoichiba menutisyoku

menuchi shokunin 面打職人 craftsmen making masks
They make masks for 神楽面 Kagura dance and 能面 Noh performances.
The wood used most often is kusunoki 楠 camphor, hinoki 檜 cypress and kiri 桐 paulownia.

. Edo no shokunin 江戸の職人 Edo craftsmen .

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Other Links

神話と里神楽の神々 (非常に詳しい資料）
神楽は神遊びともいい、
宮廷で神を祭る際の舞楽で、もつぱら神前で奏する音楽。 天宇受売命を遠祖とする猿女が代々伝えてきた。
これ対する一般の神楽を里神楽という。

九州 ：　日向神楽、佐伯神楽、平戸神楽。
中国・山陰・山陽 ：
大社神楽、佐陀神楽、備前神楽。
四国 ：　伊予神楽。
近畿・中部 　：　巫女神楽、花祭り。
関東 ：　里神楽、岩戸神楽。
東北 ：　番神楽、山伏神楽。
北海道 ：　松前神楽。
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~pq7s-nsmr/nof_shinwa.htm


子供神楽, 写真がいっぱい
Childrens Kagura with many photos

From　2000
http://ww3.enjoy.ne.jp/~ahmsm.kuwata/child/child.html

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KAGURA as a kigo for haiku !

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