6/15/2011

Tsuburosashi Sado

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. Sadogashima 佐渡島 Sado Island - Introduction .
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Tsuburo fertility dance (tsuburosashi)

***** Location: Sado Island, Japan
***** Season: Mid-Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

tsuburosashi つぶろさし Tsuburo fertility dance
June 15

Performance of a special fertility dance at the shrines Sugawara, Hamochimachi and Kusakari in the south of Sado Island, Niigata.

菅原神社 新潟県羽茂町
太神楽つぶろさし
鬼舞つぶろさし

CLICK for more photos


There are two performers, a man, Tsuburosashi, and a woman, Sasarasuri ささらすり.
Tsuburosashi holds a stick formed like a phallus and jumps around rubbing and waving it. Sasarasuri holds a stick made of bamoo.

They both hop around and rub these sticks.

The group of performer carry a special drum decorated with ancient zeni coins,
Zenidaiko 銭太鼓.

The penis is called tsuburo, also a name for the bottle gourd.
sashi refers to it rubbing in a ritual prayer for fertility for the fields and the families.

The dance dates back to the 16th century. Legend knows, that a messenger of the village was send to Kyoto to learn about the tea ceremony. He saw a similar dance durng the Gion festival in Kyoto and introduced it to his home village, when he came back. Later it was picked up at the local Shinto shrines during the annual festival, to pray for thousands of rice grains coming from one seed.

.

Since tsuburo is such a colorful local word, it mighe even be translated with a more "down to earth" word in other languages, like

big dick dance festival

Here is a long list for synonymes

beaver basher
baby-maker
bell on a pole
beef whistle
boomstick
burrito
bishop
bratwurst
braciole

and so on until Z

source : namingschemes.com/Penis


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At shrine Kusakari jinja 草刈神社


source : dojoccosado



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つぶろさし花見婆さまのけぞつて
tsuburosashi hanami basama nokezotte

tsuburo fertility dance -
a woman dressed for cherry blossom viewing
bends far backward


Kishida Chigyo 岸田稚魚 (1918 - 1988)
大正7年)1月19日 - 1988年(昭和63年)11月24日


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Related words

***** . Penis Festivals for a bountiful harvest  

***** . ondeko 鬼太鼓 (おんでこ) Demon's Drums


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6/03/2011

Sato Koroku

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Sato Koroku Day (Kooroku Ki)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: Mid-Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Satoo Kooroku 佐藤紅緑
1874年(明治7年)7月6日 - 1949年(昭和24年)6月3日)


Kooroku Memorial Day, Kooroku Ki 紅緑忌 (こうろくき)
June 3. He was 75 years old.



He was born in Hirosaki, Aomori prefecture and later worked for the Nihon Shinbun newspaper in Tokyo. Here he met Masaoka Shiki for the first time and became his haiku student.
In 1895 he returned to Hirosaki because of illness and worked for a newspaper there.
He also translated works from Dumas and Victor Hugo.

In 1905 he stopped working for the newspaper and founded a haiku group.
In 1922 he married the actress Mikasa Mariko 三笠万里子.
In 1923 he travelled to Europe to study more about cinema.

He wrote a lot of popular literature. Many of his novels for young boys were published in the famous magazine
"Young Boys Club" Shoonen Kurabu 少年倶楽部.




His Manuscript, the red marks are from Kyoshi.
CLICK for original LINK ... aomori museum
© Aomori Museum ... look at more pages.



His Grave

"A poet should write about ideal situations.
If you just state the daily complaints of your wife,
that does not make you a good novelist!"


CLICK for original LINK
© PB5H-OOTK



- Reference : 佐藤紅緑


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HAIKU



賭け事にかけし羊生紅緑忌
kakegoto ni kakeshi hitsushi nushi Kooroku Ki

this sheperd
started gambling ...
Kooroku Memorial Day


© hokubei shinbun Senryu collection

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戦中も少年に夢あり紅緑忌 
senchuu mo shoonen ni yume ari Kooroku Ki

even during the war
young boys have dreams -
Kooroku Memorial day


Kotani Shun 小谷俊

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All Tr. Gabi Greve

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Related words

***** Introducing Japanese Haiku Poets 


***** Memorial Days of Famous People
....... A WORLDWIDE SAIJIKI




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6/01/2011

Radio Day

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Radio Day (denpa no hi)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

denpa no hi 電波の日 (でんぱのひ) "radio day"
denpa kinenbi 電波記念日(でんぱきねんび) radio memorial day

Electro-magnetic Waves Day

June 1
This is a constitutional holiday, introduced in 1950, marking the enactment of Japan's radio law and broadcast act.


CLICK for more photos


There is a theory, that because of a similarity in pronounciation
6 can be read MU and 1 can be read SEN, the word

musen "ムセン"(無線) wireless

used for wireless radio transmission, the first day of the sixth month was choosen as this day.


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Each year on 18 April, radio amateurs celebrate
World Amateur Radio Day.


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HAIKU



風生先生矍鑠として電波の日
Fuusei sensei kakushaku to shite denpa no hi

Master Fusei
is still so vigorous . . .
Radio Day


Kishi Fusanro (Fuusanroo) 岸風三樓 (1910 - 1982)
(He was born in Okayama)


Kishi was a student of haiku master Fusei sensei.

. Tomiyasu Fusei (Tomiyasu Fuusei )富安 風生 
1885 - 1979 


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radio--
they walk side by side
sharing earphones

radio--
a man dances slowly
crossing the road

radio-
men sit a round to listen
to the arsenal match

radio--
she leaves me speaking
to myself

radio--
they shout to the changing
regea music

radio--
they shout energetic
to the unseen goal

radio--
he's twisting his small head
all the time

passengers enjoy
their morning ride -
radio music

radio--
cool passengers in a bus
burst in laughter

radio--
an old man is bargaining
for a modern system

Barrack Elung'ata
Kenya, Feburary 2011


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Related words

***** WKD Reference

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Kifune Shrine Festivals

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Kifune Shrine and its festivals

***** Location: Kyoto, Japan
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Kifune matsuri 貴船祭 (きふねまつり) Kifune festival
... Kifune shinji 貴船神事(きふねしんじ)Kifune Shinto ritual
gokoosai 御更祭(ごこうさい)"changing the robes of the deity"
itadori matsuri 虎杖祭(いたどりまつり "knotweed festival"
kigo for mid-summer

Kifune, sometimes read Kibune (きぶね).

June 1
The most important yearly festival at Kifune Shrine 貴船神社 in the Kurama mountain region.
Its official name is gokoosai 御更祭.
It used to be held twice a year, on the first day of the fourth and eleventh lunar month.
Kibune shrine belongs to the Kamo Shrines of Kyoto (sessha 摂社).

In the forests around the shrine there grow a lot of itadori, Japanese knotweed.
People pick this plant and compare its length.


. WKD : itadori いたどり Japanese knotweed
Polygonum cuspidatum, looks like a kind of rhubarb.


quote
Kibune matsuri
Formerly this festival was held on the first day of the fourth and eleventh months at Kibune Jinja in Sakyō Ward, Kyōto City, Kyōto Prefecture.
Prior to the Meiji Period, when this shrine had an auxiliary shrine relationship to Kamowakeikazuchi Jinja (also known as Kamikamo Jinja, Upper Kamo Shrine), the festival was observed on a grand scale. In the past, on the day before the festival there used to be a kitchen knife ceremony, and shinsen (sacred offerings) were placed in a chest (karabitsu).
Then, together with birds (kakedori), people presented these to the kami on the day of the ceremony.
After the ritual offering (hōbei) of nusa (sacred paper strips/streamers) and the intoning of norito (prayers) by the shinshoku (priests) they visited the branch and hilltop shrines and performed hōbei, then returned wearing flowers taken from the mountain peak in their hair.

At the midpoint in route between the Kibune and Upper Kamo Shrines a designated person chanted a secret song to which the other priests responded in a repetitive manner. Formerly, during the fourth month festival worshippers used to collect the Japanese knotweed that grew profusely on the mountain near the shrine in a competition for size and amount, thus leading to the popular name itadori matsuri ("Knotweed Festival"). Vestiges of this ancient festival remain in the annual shin'yo (portable shrine) processional held on June 1, and in the festivals for the changing of the kami's robes (gokōisai) held on April 1 and November 1.
source : Mogi Sakae, Kokugakuin Uni


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Kibune Shrine (貴船神社, Kibune Jinja),
also known as Kifune Jinja, is a Shinto shrine located at Sakyō-ku in Kyoto, Japan.
It was founded more than 1600 years ago.
Legend tells us that the goddess Tamayori-hime appeared on a yellow boat in Osaka Bay and said, "Build a sanctuary at the place where this boat stops and deify the spirit of the locality, and the country will prosper." The boat floated up the rivers of Yodogawa to the river Kamogawa, stopping at the beginning of the stream.
The deities enshrined here are Takaokami-no-Kami and Kuraokami-no-Kami. They are the gods of water, and people pray to them for rain during times of drought, and to stop the rain during floods.
One emperor offered a black horse in a drought, and a white horse during a prolonged spell of rain. This is why people now offer up votive plates with the image of a horse.
The shrine became the object of Imperial patronage during the early Heian period.In 965, Emperor Murakami ordered that Imperial messengers were sent to report important events to the guardian kami of Japan. These heihaku were initially presented to 16 shrines including the Kibune Shrine.

From 1871 through 1946, the Kibune Shrine was officially designated one of the Kanpei-chūsha (官幣中社), meaning that it stood in the second rank of government supported shrines.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !

京都市左京区鞍馬貴船町180


. Kuraokami, Takaokami 高おかみ神 , Kuramitsuha .
Deity of Rain



Amulets from Kibune Jinja


chinowa omamori ちのわ守り for summer purification





龍神札 Dragon God amulet

. The Dragon Art Gallery - 2012 .



御神水せっけん soap from sacred water
清砂 purifying sand
kajitori 梶取守



何事もうまくいく絵馬 - may everything go well - amulet

all kinds of ema votive tablets and more
source : www.kibune.or.jp/jinja/omamori


tsuri yuki anzen 釣行安全 safety when fishing
ruaa mamori ルアー守 luer amulet
. Amulet for fishing from Kibune Shrine .

. Summer Purification (nagoshi, harae) .



むすび守袋型 Musubi bag form
むすび守文型 Musubi letter form

. Enmusubi 縁結び to find a good partner .




貴船神社船土鈴
clay bell of the yellow boat of Tamayori-Hime

A play of words with the name of the shrine, 黄船 "yellow boat".

. Kyoto no dorei 京都の土鈴 clay bells from Kyoto .

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Suzuka Valley and Waterfall, 鈴鹿谷
The Main Shrine, 貴船神社本宮
The Rock Garden, 石庭

Page with many thumbnails of the places within the precincts.
http://www.kibune.or.jp/meisho/

. . .

Kibune Jinja / Kifune Homepage
http://www.kibune.or.jp/jinja/

Festivals
http://www.kibune.or.jp/jinja/event/
http://www.kibune.or.jp/jinja/kibune/saijiki.html


. . . . . every month:
tsukinamisai 月次祭 monthly festival
hatsu tatsusai 初辰祭 festival on the first day of the dragon
masshasai 末社祭 festival of the subordinate shrine

. . . . . Saijiki Events:
hatsu tatsu taisai 初辰大祭
. Grand Festival on the first day of the dragon in January
tondo とんど Tondo fire, January 15
amagoi matsuri 雨乞祭 Rain Ritual, March 9
Kifune matsuri 貴船祭 Grand Festival, June 1
Minazuki no oharae 水無月大祓
. Great Purification ritual in June, June 30
Kifune no mizu matsuri 貴船の水まつり
. Water Festival, July 7
Kikka shinji 菊花神事
. Chrysanthemum ritual, Spetember 9
Meiji sai 明治祭 Meiji festival, November 3
Kifune momiji matsuri 貴船もみじ祭
. celebrating red leaves, November 7

. . . . .


quote
In Kyoto, Kibune Shrine deifies Takaokami-no-kami, who is worshiped as a rain god. It is described in the Shoku-nihongi, the Nihon-koki, the Shoku-nihon-koki , the Montoku-tenno Jitsuroku, and the Sandai Jitsuroku that from 765, the seventh year of Tempyohoji, people prayed almost every year to Niu-Kawakami and Kibune for rain. They are said to have offered a black horse when they wanted the rains to start and a white horse when they wanted the rains to end because it was believed that the spirit of the gods descend to earth on a horse. Black is the color for casting a rain spell as it symbolizes dark clouds bringing rain. In contrast, white is the symbol of the bright sun.
These prayers were held as national events.
Sacred Water in Japan
Iwai Hiromi




The Sacred Water 御神水 goshinsui
Even Murasaki Shikibu was aware of the powers of the water at Kibune Shrine. She came here to pray for the love of her husband, and her prayer was granted. Now the shrine is also worshipped by lovers, praying to the "god of good marriage". Workers also pray for a good relationship with their employers.

Even special soap is sold at the shrine.

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Oku no Miya 奥の宮

In the compounds, at the back of Kibune shrine, there is one of the three sacred

ryuuketsu 龍穴 dragon holes

This dragon hole inhabited by a white dragon, who brings prosperity to those who worship him.
It is a great "power spot" of Japan.

Once a carpenter lost his chisle, as it fell into the hole.
But to his surprize, a strong wind blew out of the whole and his chisle fell back on the ground in front of his feet.



Shrine Muro Ryuketsu Jinja 室生竜穴神社
Nara
. The Dragon Art Gallery – 2012 .

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Water festivel in Kifune
(貴船の水まつり) Kifune no mizu matsuri


at Kifune Shrine, July 7



quote
The origin of this festival is rain-making rituals.
Now is more like for showing our gratitude to water.

The festival consists of offering tea ceremony, dancing and cooking ceremony in front of the Gods. Tea cremony, of course, cannot be done without water, so it's the symbolic ceremony of this festival. And the cooking ceremony is offered by the special cooking school called Ikuma school.

Ancestors of the Ikuma school used to be cookers for the Imperial family. It is said that the current master is 29th-generation of the family.

At the ceremony, he cooks a fish in front of the god without touching it by his hands at all. (The fish is altarage for Gods, so it shouldn't be touched by men.)
source : see-u-in-kyoto.blogspot.com


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. Amagoi Matsuri 雨乞祭 Rain Ritual
March 9
Horses offered to the gods in rain rituals.
水の祀



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quote
Kifune Festival held in Manazuru-cho,
真鶴 貴船まつり

Ashigara-shimo-gun, Kanagawa pref. is counted as one of Japan’s three largest marine festivals and a designated National Significant Intangible Folk Cultural Asset. The origin of the festival is dated back to the middle of the 17th century, when people began to put Mikoshi (portable shrine) on a ship to pray for purification of fishing boats and stone carrying boats in the harbor and then carried it around the village.

This old, traditional and pious festival is held on July 27th to 28th, filling the whole town of Manazuru with air of excitement. As the festival is composed of a lot of exciting spectacles such as the colorfully carved Kobaya-bune boat, Manazuru-bayashi (traditional band playing music) lively cheering up the town, reverent Kashima-odori dance, and flower floats and Kaidenma (the towing boat) for which masculine strength is fully expressed, a lot of tourists from all over the country visit the town of Manazuru.
On these two days, the citizens of Manazuru all pull together to make this festival a great success.
source : nippon-kichi.jp



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CLICK for more photos

新緑や人の少なき貴船村 
shinryoku ya hito no sukunaki Kifune mura

fresh green -
there are few people
in Kifune village


Hatano Soha (Sooha) 波多野爽波 (1923-1991)
source : weekly-haiku.blogspot.com


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***** . 貴船神社 Kibune Shrine, Buzen Kagura
Iwado Kagura of Buzen, 岩戸神楽 in Kyushu
Autumn, O-Bon

***** . Kibunegiku 貴船菊 (きぶねぎく) wild aster from Kibune
shuumeigiku 秋明菊(しゅうめいぎく) "bright autumn chrysanthemum"
Anemone japonica
kigo for mid-autumn

***** . kawadoko ryoori 川床料理
food served on a riverbed veranda  

In Kyoto, near shrine Kibune Jinja 貴船神社 served in the forest restaurants along the clean river.
kawayuka 川床(かわゆか)riverbed veranda



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5/25/2011

Tsuruoka Tenmangu Yamagata

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Tsuruoka Tenmangu Festival
(Tsuruoka Tenmangu Sai)

***** Location: Tsuruoka, Yamagata
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

bakemono matsuri 化物祭 (ばけものまつり)
monster festival


Tsuruoka Tenmangu Sai
鶴岡天満宮祭(つるおかてんまんぐうさい)
Tsuruoka Tenmangu Festival

May 25

At the Tenmangu Shrine in Tsuruoka town, Yamagata.
鶴岡市神明町



Men and women dress up in fancy costumes and parade in the town.
Dressed with faces covered and a large straw hat, they speak no word and pour sake ricewine or soft drinks for the onlookers.
Is someone can take part in this parade without being recognized by anyone, his/her wish will be granted.

In former times, these "monsters" used to enter the homes of parishioners and invite all to drink with them.

This festival reminds of the time when Sugawara Michizane was taken to exile.
People in Kyoto did not dare to show compassion for him, so they did not speak and dressed up and covered their faces when he was paraded through the town, to show their sympathy for him.


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. Sugawara Michizane 菅原道真 .
Tenman-Gu in Dazaifu 大宰府の天満宮


The shrine in Yamagata was founded in 1603 by Lord Mogami Yoshiaki 最上義光, near the West Gate of his castle, to protect it from evil influence.
It is dedicated to Michizane, Deity of Learning, but also to pray for a good harvest, protection from fire and disaster and lead a happy life.
Sailors pray for a safe trip 渡海無事.
Prayers for rain (amagoi 雨乞い) were also held here many times in the past

. . . . .




例祭 5月25日
祈年祭 4月15日 Kinen sai, toshigoi no matsuri
新嘗祭 11月25日 Niiname sai

恒例祭 kooreisai

 初天神 1月25日 First Tenjin Ceremony
 天神講感謝祈願祭 8月25日
Tengu dance and lion dance are offered.

. Japanese HP of the shrine

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quote
Tsuruoka Town (鶴岡市, Tsuruoka-shi) is a city located in the Shonai region of Yamagata Prefecture, Japan.
The city is located on the coast of Yamagata Prefecture bordering the Sea of Japan and has some locally popular beaches such as Yunohama and Sanze.

Tsuruoka is known within Japan for "dadacha-mame" (だだちゃ豆), a brand of soybeans, which have been called "the king of edamame"; they are also used for other products such as nattō and in manjū.
There are two theories as to the origin of the name: one is that it derives from dadacha, the Shonai dialectical word for "father" – gagacha is the dialectical word for "mother", while the other is that the beans came from Date, Fukushima, and were originally called Date-no-chamame, which became Date-chamame and then Dadacha-mame.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


. WASHOKU : Dadacha Beans


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鶴岡天神祭 Tsuruoka Tenjin Festival
Tsuruoka Tenjin Ema Parade 大絵馬パレード




source : Enjoy Shonai


. Ema 絵馬 Votive Plaques, Votive Tablets .


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HAIKU




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Related words

***** . Ghosts (yookai, yuurei, bakemono)  


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5/21/2011

Mifune Festival

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Mifune festival (Mifune matsuri)

***** Location: Kyoto, Japan
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Mifune matsuri 三船祭 (みふねまつり) Mifune festival
lit. "three boats festival"
... shuuyuusai 舟遊祭(しゅうゆうさい)boat ride festival
funaasobi matsuri

ooginagashi 扇流し(おうぎながし)floating handfans
Nishi matsuri 西祭(にしまつり) "Festival on the West" (of Kyoto)

Third sunday in May.
(It used to be the 18th of May).
At the shrine Kurumazaki jinja 車折神社,
along the river Oigawa 大堰川(おおいがわ).

CLICK for more photos

The deity of the shrine is known to grant good luck in business, so many people come here to pray. There is even a "shrine of the arts" in the compound
"Geinoo jinja" 芸能神社
. . . CLICK here for Photos of the shrine !

On the festival day, the deity is put on a boat and entertained with song and dance during a river tour with three festive boats with dragon heads 竜舟鷁首 (りゅうとうげきしゅ).
CLICK for more photos

Other accompanying boats hoast exhibitions of art, haiku meetings, poetry meetings, song and dance performances and more.


CLICK for more photos
The floating of handfans at the Rankyo gorge 嵐峡 is especially graceful.

This festival has a different flavor from those in Southern Kyoto, hence the name "Festival in the West".

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quote
Mifune Matsuri
The scene of an ancient boat party on a river is reproduced by some 20 boats in the town of Kyoto, City:Asahi-cho, Saga, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto City

The scene of a boat party on a river from 1,000 years ago is reproduced by some 20 boats on the Oigawa River flowing through Arashiyama in Kyoto. Every year, 100,000 tourists come to view this graceful spectacle. This is an event organized by the Kurumazaki Shrine standing close to the river, and originates in a ceremony that was held upon receiving the Emperor on his visit to this land.

After a ritual held at the shrine at noon, people dressed in ancient costumes proceed along the beautiful Togetsukyo Bridge and board the boats. Their costumes are very colorful, and you will also see cute little children who are dressed in kimono, too. Also interesting are the boats which have dragon heads or birds' heads designed on the prow.
Each boat has its assigned role, for example, there is a boat carrying musicians who play music, while dance performances are given on another boat, or poetry is recited on a different boat. Sensu fans of all colors are floated on the water surface by ladies dressed in 12 layers of kimono known as juni-hitoe, producing a most exquisite and graceful spectacle.

Kurumazaki Shrine is also well-known for its patron deity of the performing arts. It is therefore visited by many famous stars who come here to offer prayers so that they can give better stage performances or rise in popularity. If you wish to sing or dance better, it might be a good idea to pay a visit to this shrine.
source : www.jnto.go.jp



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HAIKU




水棹突く白丁老いけり三船祭
misao tsuku shirahari oikeri Mifune sai

the old boatsman
pushes with the long rod -
Mifune festival


. WKD Awano Seiho 阿波野青畝

source : haiku/seiho


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Related words

***** ***** . Fan (oogi 扇 - uchiwa 団扇) .


***** . Fans from Marugame .


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5/15/2011

Aoi Festival

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Aoi festival (Aoi matsuri)

***** Location: Kyoto
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

CLICK for original .nippon-shinyaku.co.jp

Aoi matsuri 葵祭 あおいまつり Aoi festival
matsuri (まつり)"the festival"

kita no matsuri 北祭(きたのまつり)"festival in the North" (of Kyoto)

Kamo no aoi 賀茂葵(かものあおい)"hollyhock from Kamo"
Kamo no matsuri 賀茂祭(かものまつり)Kamo festival

kake aoi 懸葵(かけあおい)"sticking hollyhock"
in the hair

aoi kazura 葵鬘(あおいかずら)"hollyhock wig"
..... moro kazura、諸鬘(もろかずら)
hair decoration with hollycock



moroha aoi 双葉葵(もろはあおい)hollyhock with two leaves
..... kazashigusa かざしぐさ
..... morohagusa もろはぐさ

Annual grand festival
May 15 at shrine 賀茂別雷神社, Kamo-wakeikazuchi jinja, in the compound of shrine Kamo jinja 賀茂神社.

In former times it was held according to the lunar calendar, on the first day of the cock in the fourth lunar month.

The name "Festival in the North" contrasts with the other big festival in Kyoto, in the south, at shrine Iwashimizu Hachimangu.

The homes on the way of the procession decorate their fences, robes and hari with hollyhock branches.



Biologically, Kamo Aoi is slightly purple, Aristolochia gigantea, and has been used in the family crest of many famous samurai, including the Tokugawa clan.

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quote
The Aoi Matsuri or "Hollyhock Festival," is one of the three main annual festivals held in Kyoto, Japan. It is a festival of the two Kamo shrines in the north of the city, Shimogamo Shrine and Kamigamo Shrine. The festival may also be referred to as the Kamo Festival.

History
According to the ancient historical record known as the Nihon Shoki, the festival originated during the reign of Emperor Kinmei (r. A.D. 539, 12th month, 5th day - 571, 4th month, 15th day). The ancient records known as the Honchō getsurei (本朝月令) and Nenchūgyōji hissho (年中行事秘抄) reveal that a succession of disastrous rain and wind had ruined the grain crops, and epidemics had spread through the country. Because diviners placed the cause as owing to the divine punishment of the Kamo deities, the emperor sent his messenger with a retinue to the shrine to conduct various acts to appease the deities, in prayer for a bountiful harvest. These included riding a galloping horse.

This became an annual ritual, and the galloping horse performance developed into an equestrian archery performance. According to the historical record known as the Zoku Nihongi (続日本記), so many people had come to view this equestrian performance on the festival day in the 2nd year of the reign of Emperor Mommu (r. 697-707) that the event was banned.

In the ninth century, Emperor Kanmu established the seat of the imperial throne in Kyoto. This represented the beginning of the Heian Period in Japanese history. Emperor Kanmu recognized the deities of the Kamo shrines as protectors of the Heian capital, and established the Aoi Matsuri as an annual imperial event.

The festival saw its peak of grandeur in the middle of the Heian Period, but this waned in the Kamakura Period and the following Muromachi Period, and as the nation entered the Sengoku Period, the festival procession was discontinued. In the Genroku era (1688–1704) of the Edo Period, it was revived, but in the 2nd year of the Meiji Period (1869), when the capital was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo, observance of the festival procession stopped. In Meiji 17 (1885), it was again revived as part of a government plan to enliven Kyoto. All but the rituals at the shrine fronts were discontinued from 1944, due to World War II. At last, the festival procession started to be held again from 1953. The Saiō-Dai 斎王代 festival princess tradition was initiated in 1956.

The festival has been called Aoi festival for the hollyhock leaves used as decoration throughout the celebration. These leaves were once believed to protect against natural disasters.

Festival events

There are two parts to Aoi Matsuri: the procession and the shrine rites.
The procession is the lead by the Imperial Messenger. Following the imperial messenger are: two oxcarts, four cows, thirty-six horses, and six hundred people. The procession starts at 10:30 of May 15 and leaves the Kyoto Imperial Palace and slowly works its way towards the Shimogamo shrine and finally the Kamigamo shrine .
...

There are two main figures of Aoi Matsuri: the Saiō-Dai and the Imperial Messenger. The Saiō-Dai is a woman who is chosen from the sisters and daughters of the emperor to dedicate herself to the Shimogamo shrine. The role of Saiō-Dai was to maintain ritual purity and to represent the Emperor at the festival. Now, the role of the Saiō-Dai is played by an unmarried woman in Kyoto.
...
Also featured at the Kamo no matsuri are horse races (kurabe-uma) and demonstrations of mounted archery (yabusame).
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


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HAIKU



草の雨祭の車過ぎてのち
kusa no ame matsuri no kuruma sugite nochi

rain on the leaves
after the floats of the festival
have passed

Tr. Gabi Greve

. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo . 1764


rainfall on the grasses
just after the festival cart
passed by

Tr. Sawa and Shiffert


After the festival car
Has passed by
The rain on the grasses.

Tr. Blyth

Blyth comments:
Today is the day of the festival and though it is raining, the festival car is decorated as usual, and passes by the poet as he stands on the roadside. After it has creaked past, only the pattering of the rain is heard, the grasses on the road side flinch or bow or stand immovable according to their nature. Rain-drops stand motionless on the flowers or hesitate and run along the stems and leaves. It requires a whole village with its remote antiquity, the festival and the car to pass ponderously by, before the rain on the grasses can be properly appreciated.


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地に落ちし葵踏み行く祭かな
ji ni ochishi aoi fumiyuku matsuri kana

they step on the leaves
fallen on the ground -
festival parade


. - Masaoka Shiki 正岡子規 - .


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Related words

***** . Kamo Shrine Festivals
including umakurabe and yabusame  

***** . Mikage matsuri at Aoi Festival

***** . nansai 南祭(なんさい)South-Festival
at Iwashimizu Hachimangu, Kyoto


***** . hollyhock 葵 (あおい) aoi
garden hollyhock, garden mallow, great mallow, holy mallow



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Kobe Festival

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Kobe Festival (Kobe Matsuri)

***** Location: Kobe City
***** Season: Early SUmmer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Sunday May 15, 2011
Green, Sea and Love

Along Flower Road, Kyu-Kyoryuchi (Old Foreign Settlement), Harborland
This is a rather new festival. There will be a
Omatsuri Parade, Hanabutai and more.

This festival started in 1971 as a highlight of the summer season and has since attracted many people, even from neighboring prefectures. It could not be held the year after the great Hanshin earthquake, due to the effects of the big earthquake. Some of the highlights are a Samba Festival, performed by dancers from Rio de Janeiro, and an the offshore firework display, the Reborn Kobe Parade, and performancse by street performers from all over the world.


The Sambastreet event takes place in Kyomachi-suji Avenue.

It will be held in 2011 as a charity event to support the people of Tohoku.
. Japan after the BIG earthquake March 11, 2011


41st 神戸まつり Kobe Matsuri
CLICK for more photos

source : www.kobe-matsuri.com

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Other festivals in Kobe
source : hometown.infocreate.co.jp

Shunsetsu-sai - Spring Festival
(February)
This is a Chinese festival to celebrate the traditional New Years. During the festival Chinatown is adorned with beautiful ornaments and firecrackers go off on the streets. A 40-meter long dragon dances through the streets. Also, a miniature dragon dance and acrobatics are performed by a local Chinese dance team.

. Shunsetsu-sai 春節祭 Spring Festival .



Kitano International Festival
(Last weekend of July)
This festival, organized with the cooperation of the foreign community, is held at the Kitano Tenma Shrine. Booths are erected within shrine compounds where international goods and dishes are sold. Also, people from different countries show their national dances and perform other shows. At this famous shrine the warlord Sugawara Michizane is worshipped



The Great Arima Tea Ceremony
(November 2 and 3)
This festival was started in 1971 as a highlight of the summer season and has since attracted many people, even from neighboring prefectures. It could not be held the last year due to the effects of the big earthquake, but it was held this year. Some of this year's highlights were the Samba Festival, performed by dancers from Rio de Janeiro, the offshore fireworks, the Reborn Kobe Parade, and performance by street performers from all over the world. It was a grand event.


KOBE JAZZ FESTIVAL 2011

Minato Kobe Fireworks


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HAIKU


a strong wind
lifts the skirts -
Samba parade 


Nakayama Ishino


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Related words

***** . Kobe Dolls (Kobe ningyoo 神戸人形
 


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5/14/2011

Wakanoura Festival

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Waka Festival (Waka matsuri)

***** Location: Wakanoura
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Waka matsuri 和歌祭 (わかまつり) Waka festival
Wakanoura matsuri 和歌浦祭(わかのうらまつり)
. Wakanoura festival

saiga matsuri 雑賀祭(さいがまつり) Saiga festival
saiga odori 雑賀踊(さいがおどり) Saiga dance


(Wakanoura is spelled in various ways,
in Japanese and in English.)


The samurai from Saiga / Saika (Saiga shuu, Saika shuu 雑賀衆, 雑賀惣国) where a group which had introduced the use of guns very early. Their fighting groups, often not more than 50 gunmen divided in two groups of 25, shooting one after another, while the other group loaded the guns again, they were able to withstand the onslaught of larger armies of Nobunaga and Hideyoshi, who finally pardoned them because he could not win against them.
They lead a rather free group life and decided everything after a democratic discussion..


source : wikipedia


The most famous of their armsmen was Saiga Magoichi - Saika Magoichi  雑賀孫市 / 孫一
the leader of the Saika Renegades, rebels who opposed Nobunaga's rise to power with Kennyo Honganji. After Kennyo's surrender, Magoichi allegedly fought at Sekigahara, and even managed to shoot Hideyoshi in the leg. Later became a mendicant monk, and obtained a government post in the Mito Domain.
The real Magoichi's name and his history are unclear, but there are some regions to claim his grave and his descendants are alive to this day.

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The main festival at the shrine Toshogu in Wakanoura.
Middle of May on a saturday or sunday.

紀州東照宮 Kishu Toshogu Shrine
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

The main deity of this shrine is Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa Bakufu, Edo government.

The founder of the Tokugawa clan in Kishu, Wakayama, Tokugawa Yorinobu, built this shrine to honor his father Ieyasu.

Early in the morning prayers and ritual dances (bugaku, dengaku) were performed in the shrine. In the after noon, the mikoshi palanquin was carried to Suzaki beach 須崎.
Everyone could be at the beach, watch the procession and celebrate. Ritual sumo wrestling was also performed. Other dances, like Mochibana dance, are performed.



source : Wakayama screens Museum

The Saiga dance is especially famous.
Men dressed in samurai attire, rattling bamboo sasara rattles and lift one leg high in the air. It is said to represent the gunmen when walking in the woods and preparing for battle.
sasara dance ささら踊り/ 笹羅踊


source : 雑賀踊の成立


.................................................................................

CLICK for more photos

Wakayama Prefecture is located in the Kinki Region of the island of Honshu, Japan.
The capital is at Wakayama City.

Located in the southwestern part of Wakayama City,
Wakanoura has been considered a scenic area since the old days. It is well-known as a place visited by many members of the Imperial family and poets who wrote poems of this beautiful land.

It was even featured in Manyoshu, the country's oldest anthology of poems written between late 7th and late 8th centuries. In the area, you will find many historic buildings and structures such as the shrine called Tamatsushima Jinja that symbolizes Wakanoura, the monument at Wakanoura Tenmangu where the god of learning Sugawara-no-Michizane is enshrined,
and Kishu Toshogu designated as an important cultural asset.

On the grounds of the Tamatsushima Jinja are monuments of Akanohito Yamabe and Basho Matsuo who both are famous poets. Yosuien, a Daimyo garden that took eight years to build from 1818, is also one of the places of interest. Wakanoura is indeed an area you would want to slowly look around while thinking of the times of Manyoshu.
source : www.japan-i.jp


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. Tosho-Gu Shrine in Nikko 日光の東照宮 .
and Tokugawa Ieyasu 徳川家康



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HAIKU



at Wakanoura, in front of shrine Tamatsushima Jinja
和歌山市和歌浦・玉津島神社前


行く春に和歌の浦にて追ひ付きたり
yuku haru ni Wakanoura nite oitsukitari

departing spring:
I've finally caught up with it
here at Wakanoura

Tr. Barnhill


at the end of spring
here at Wakanoura
I have finally caught up (with spring)

quote


(There is no cut marker at the end of line 1 in Japanese.)
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉  Archives of the WKD .


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sasara instrument ささら / 簓


初蝉は雑賀踊りのささらかな
hatsu semi wa saiga odori no sasara kana

this first cicada
sounds like the rattle
at the Saiga dance


Shun Koo 春耕


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Haiku about Wakanoura


行春にわかの浦にて追付たり
yuku haru ni Waka no Ura nite oitsuketari

The passage of spring
at Waka Bay
have I found, indeed.

Tr. Thomas McAuley

source : dmitrismirnov


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掃溜に鶴の下りけり和歌の浦

hakidame ni tsuru no ori keri waka no ura

cranes land
on the rubbish heap...
Waka-no-Ura


Kobayashi Issa
Tr. David Lanoue


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涼しさや蚊帳の中より和歌の浦
suzushiza ya kaya no naka yori Wakanoura

this coolness -
from inside the mosquito net
(I look at) Wakanoura


Natsume Soseki 夏目漱石
1911, August 14th, Soseki 45


source : agara no wakayama

Stone memorial at Wakaura Park わかうら園


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Related words

***** . Placenames used in Haiku - LIST .  


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5/09/2011

Yase Festival

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Yase Festival (Yase matsuri)

***** Location: Kyoto
***** Season: Early Summer
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

Yase matsuri 八瀬祭 (やせまつり) Yase festival
sanyare matsuri さんやれ祭(さんやれまつり)


May 9
(Nowadays often on May 5).

Main festival at the shrine Yase Tenmangu 八瀬天満宮, Kyoto.

It used to be a festival to chase horses 馬駆け, similar to that of the "Aoi festival).

Children dance with floats (odori hoko 踊り鉾), calling "sanyare sanyare", hence the name of the festival.



Yase Tenmangu Shrine Gate

The main deity at the shrine is
. Sugawara Michizane 菅原道真 .
.

It was first build by the teacher of Michizane, 比叡山法性坊.In the shrine compound is one access to Mount Hieizan, the Yase Slope, and also a stone monument, were Michizane sat down during his visit.

Look at many photos of the shrine:
source : yase.html

. . . . .

CLICK for more photos

In another corner of the compound is shrine Akimoto jinja 秋元神社, famous for its dance Yase Shamenchi Odori 赦免地踊り, performed on the autumn festival of the shrine,
on the second Sunday in October.

The dance in in memory of Akimoto Tajima-no-Kami Takatomo 秋元但馬守 喬知.
It is a lantern dance, where young boys wear lanterns on their heads. The dance is an intangible cultural asset.


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quote
"Yase Doji Exhibition" 八瀬童子 Yase Dooji

In ancient Japan, the term Yase Doji referred to the people who lived in the Yase district of Kyoto and worked for the area's Enryaku temple. Despite their plebeian status, Yase Doji were prosperous and maintained strong connections with those in power, including emperors, aristocrats and shogun. After the Meiji Era, they were even entrusted by the government to be the imperial koshi (palanquin) bearers.

In 2010, some historical records that detailed the development of Yase Doji were designated as Important Cultural Properties

source : Japan Times, December 2012


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HAIKU





数珠かけた直衣姿や八瀬祭
juzu kaketa nahoshi sugata ya Yase matsuri

wearing rosaries
and official court robes -
Yase festival


. Miyake Shoozan 三宅嘯山 (1718 - 1801) .
Miyake Shozan (1718 - 1801)


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Related words

***** . WKD : Main Index  


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