Many households make it a custom of holding bon events in the middle of August, and the "Hiki no Bon Odori (Bon dance of Hiki)" is being continued as one of the events during the bon period by a preservation association consisting mainly of members of the local womens association. Bon dances take place on the night of the 13th or 14th (mostly on the 14th) and are danced in the gardens of households during the first bon season after the death of a family member in memorial to the dead. It is said that ancient group memorial services turned into this custom of bon dances. The performances consist of five dances: "Yottake," "Honen Odori (Honen dance)," "Te-odori," "Hyogo," and "Ji-odori." "Nakanomata Kagura" is held on the second weekend of December when the weather is cold, with 33 kagura music and dances pieces performed throughout the night. Its history is said to date back 200 or even 400 years, and the kagura is minutely recorded in the "Kagura Mondoshu (kagura questions and answers)" kept in the shrine. Its style of having tatami laid out on the ground next to the shrine to form a "Maiden (dancing building)" is unusual, and the kagura is called the kagura of the "appearance of the holy object." The 15th "Kojin Mai (Kojin dance)" performance which involves an exchange of questions and answers between the "holy object" and the "shinto priest" is quite distinctive.
◆Entire story: 30 minutes
Kijo-cho , Miyazaki
Related category: Festival Folkways Art
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