A protracted and theatrical death.

In this final video from the recent annual matsuri in my village. In this ending sequence to the dance, the hero, Yorimasa, and his sidekick dispatch the evil demon. The demon is hit by arrows at least 6 times, hacked and stabbed with swords, and still manages to keep fighting!!

The Yorimasa story is set in the 12th Century, with the Emperor being afflicted by an evil spirit inhabiting a dark cloud. Minamoto Yorimasa is summoned and he dispatches the monster with a single arrow shot into the cloud. In the story the monster has the face of a monkey, the back of a lion, the tail of a fox, the feet of a badger, and the voice of a bird.

Monkey Attack (comedic interlude)

Continuing with videos from the annual matsuri in my village last week. A couple of weeks ago I saw 2 kagura groups use the Kakko dance to inject a comedic interlude into the all-night performance, but the Tanijyugo group uses the Yorimasu dance for this purpose.

After a bit of stand-up comedy, the hapless farmer is harassed by a troop of monkeys who serve a demon. This is the dance that uses the baby monkey masks. The monkeys chase the farmer through the audience, stopping sometimes to pose for the cameras. Kids, and sometimes adults in the audience will also be grabbed and dragged on stage. I've seen very young children grabbed and be absolutely terrified, much to the delight of their parents.

Demon's entrance

Continuing with some videos of kagura performed by my neighbors at the village's annual matsuri.

It's usually dramatic when an Oni (demon/ogre) makes it's appearance on the stage. In this sequence Hachiman, the God of war based on the semi-mythical Emperor Ojin, is dancing alone on the stage. Amid clouds of smoke and brandishing a firework, the demon arrives and begins the battle with Hachiman. Good versus Evil, and Good of course wins.

Though a traditional folk art, Iwami kagura is notable for having adapted over time. Smoke machines and fireworks were first used at a performance of Iwami Kagura at the World Expo held in Osaka in 1970. Now their use has spread and most kagura groups utilize the technology. Radio mikes are now also standard equipment.

Tanijyugo kagura group dance in the 8-beat style.

Jingi Daiko

Last weekend was the annual matsuri in my village, Tanijyugo, so I'm going to post several videos of the all-night kagura performed by the villagers.

This first piece is called Jingi daiko, and is local to Iwami Kagura. It's not very common, I've only seen it performed once in Ichiyama, and they did a different version than this one from my village.

The 4 drummer dancers represent the 4 seasons.

If there is one sound that represents Japanese music to me it's the sound of the Taiko, the big drum.

Typical Japanese landscape 9

In Kerr's "Dogs & Demons" he writes of some first-time visitors to Japan driving into Osaka from the airport through this section of the city. The son commented "so this is where the poor people live." "No! this is where everyone lives." was the reply.

Kansai International Airport (Outside)

The Aeroplaza is a hotel/shopping complex attached to Kansai Airport's terminal building

Connected to the terminal by a covered walkway. For those who like expensive hotels and shopping malls. Never been in it myself.

Between the terminal and the Aeroplaza is the train station for connections into Osaka. Rather fine skylight.

Waiting for the first train.

Ishigami Shrine, Matsubara, Hamada

Matsubara is a fishing village that is now part of Hamada City. Ishigami Shrine is just inside the village a stone's throw from Hamada City Hall and busy Route 9. The kami of the shrine is Amenotoyotarashikarahime (which could be roughly translated as "Princess Heavenly Abundance), and it was here that I learned the story of how Iwami got it's name.

Since I posted that story I have learned another version of it. In this other version Ameno does not kill the serpent, but simply calls for help to Yatsukamizuomitsunu, and it is he who kills the serpent.

Both versions of the story obviously relate to Iwami's dependence on the power of Izumo, but I prefer the first, simply because it is more detailed.

Sandwiched between 2 mountains, and between the sea and central Hamada, Matsubara is a maze of narrow lanes and alleys and a quiet respite from the bustle of the city.

Tengu Mask

The earliest form of Tengu in Japan was a half-bird half-man creature, the Karasu (crow) Tengu, but the commonest form is the red faced, long nosed version that has come to be associated with yamabushi, the "mountain warriors" of Shugendo. Like all the masks, it is often used to ward off evil spirits. Like all my masks, this one is for sale at a very reasonable price :).

I've only seen the Tengu mask used in one kagura dance, and I've only seen it performed once.

This wonderful carved mask is in the temple on top of the mountain on Miyajima.

Another carved wooden mask, this one was over a metre in height, so obviously not meant to be worn. It seems the mouth is made to move. It was at a shrine in Miyoshi.

The tengu with it's huge nose is an obvious phallic symbol. This was one of a pair of masks guarding a "vagina" rock at a fertility shrine on Mt. daisen.

A tengu leads the procession at Tsunozu Matsuri

Kagura mask index

Enko..... commonly known as Kappa

This is the drain cover found in my village and the surrounding town of Sakurae. It depicts an Enko which is the local name for a strange creature found only in Japan known mostly by the name of Kappa.

Kappas are aquatic creatures that live in rivers, streams, springs, ponds, and irrigation ditches all over Japan, though they can also survive on dry land. They are generally about 3 to 4 feet tall, with green scaly skin, webbed feet, and a shell, similar to a turtles, on its back. In many ways it looks remarkably like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (remember them?). Perhaps its strangest feature is its head, which has a bowl-shaped cavity on top surrounded by a ring of spiky hair. When out and about on dry land, this cavity must remain filled with water or else the Kappa becomes seriously weakened. Kappa is an ardent sumo wrestling fan, and will eagerly challenge any solitary traveller it encounters to a bout. The best strategy therefore if encountering a Kappa is to bow deeply. When the Kappa returns the bow the water spills out of the cavity and he become too weak to fight.

Kappa is an omnivore, and particularly likes horses and small children, which it will drag into the water before sucking out the innerds ( through an orifice not in the victims head!!!) but most of all Kappa loves cucumbers, there is even a type of sushi made with cucumbers, kappamaki , named after him. Parents whose children are about to swim in a pond or river will inscribe the childs name on a cucumber and throw it into the water in the belief that this will placate the Kappa and protect the child. Kappa is not purely malevolent and sometimes helps humans, and therefore is more akin to an Imp or Trickster than a monster.

The reason it is on our draincover is because there is a story about Enko set in our little village, and I'll post that story later.

Daily Life in Japan

Daily Life in Japan at the time of the Samurai, 1185 - 1603 Louis Frederic Translated by Eileen M. Lowe Tuttle Books ISBN 0-804813496-1 256pp A problem I have with a lot of history books, especially Japanese history books, is that they are about the history of the rulers, concerned with war, power, and the "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous"!, and often have little to do with the actual lives of most people. For instance, I tire of reading something like ..."the Japanese ate little meat because of the Buddhist proscription against meat-eating".....the buddhist proscription was adhered to only by a small percentage of the Japanese people, and even then they found ways to circumvent it. Most Japanese ate any meat they could get their hands on! So, if you interested in the Lives of the Poor and Unknown, Frederic's book can't be beat. A full range of topics are included, life-stages from birth to death, city and country, occupations and crafts, the family system, the position of women in society, religion, and the way of the warrior. In each section he contrasts the lives of the upper classes with those of the lower, and what emerges is a very clear picture that their lives were very different. For instance, in the case of women's position, the women of the upper classes were little more than "borrowed wombs", but as one moves down through the classes women had more and more power and rights. The source for a lot of the information about common people of the period comes from illuminated scrolls which were used by monks to teach, and therefore often illustrated daily life of the common people. The book is also an excellent overview of a turbulent period of Japanese history. An excellent book for peeking behind the modern veneer of homogenity in Japan.