Let's go see traditional events that can only be seen here now! Series: Summary of Kanagawa's Intangible Folk Cultural Properties January and February Edition
When you hear the term "intangible folk cultural properties," it may sound somehow stuffy and unfamiliar, but it includes things you may have heard of in your daily life, such as lion dances, kite flying, and Dontoyaki, as well as puppet shows, Kagura dance, and festival music.
Kanagawa Prefecture is also home to many of these intangible folk cultural properties, and the prefecture's website has an intangible folk cultural property map. Why not use this as a reference to visit these precious historical cultural sites?
Kanagawa Prefecture Homepage Kanagawa Prefecture Intangible Folk Cultural Properties
URL: http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/cnt/f6658/p401454.html
Yokohama area
Shioka Kumano Shrine Tsutsugayu Ceremony (designated an intangible folk cultural property by Yokohama City)
This is a Shinto ritual for fortune-telling using rice porridge that has been carried out without interruption since the third year of Tenryaku (949). A large cauldron is placed in the sacred garden set up within the shrine grounds, and from early in the morning, brown rice, leaves from the sacred Nagi tree, and 27 reeds are added and the rice porridge is boiled. The reeds are then cut open and the number of rice grains that fall inside is used to predict the crop and weather for the year.
| Date and Time: | Saturday, January 14th *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Shioka Kumano Shrine |
| address: | 1137 Shiokacho, Kohoku Ward, Yokohama City |
| access: | About 10 minutes walk from Okurayama Station on the Tokyu Toyoko Line |
Shonan area
Kamakura Wooden Song - Intangible Cultural Property designated by Kamakura City -
Kiyari-uta is a work song sung when pulling timber, but it was also sung when pulling heavy objects such as stones. The leader sings on top of the wooden cart, and when the music accompanies it, all the pullers join forces to pull the cart through town and riverbanks.
| Date and Time: | January 4th (Wed) *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, Kamakura city, etc. |
| address: | Kamakura Station area |
| access: | JR, Enoshima Electric Railway Kamakura Station |
Kamakura Kagura - Intangible Cultural Property designated by Kamakura City -
Yukamakura Kagura is also called Yutate Kagura or Yuhana Kagura, in which hot water is boiled in a kettle, a mountain decoration is set up, and dancers perform a dance inside the "mountain."
First Kagura
| Date and Time: | Friday, January 6th *Ended in 2017 |
|---|---|
| place: | Yakumo Shrine |
| address: | 1-11-22 Omachi, Kamakura City |
| access: | Approximately 10 minutes walk from JR and Enoshima Electric Railway Kamakura Station |
Fujisawa Scaffolding Worker Wood Carver (including ladder climbing and matting) - Fujisawa City Designated Intangible Cultural Property -
Kiyari is a song that combines two elements: a chant (praying for the gods' protection as the work is often dangerous) and a shout (a signal to concentrate one's strength all at once).
Fujisawa City Fire Department New Year's Parade
| Date and Time: | January 8th (Sunday) *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Fujisawa City Fire and Disaster Prevention Training Center (former site of Prefectural Fujisawa Kita High School) |
| address: | 3417-1 Ishikawa, Fujisawa City |
| access: | Approximately 20 minutes walk from Rokukai Nihon University Station on the Odakyu Enoshima Line |
Oiso Sagicho - National Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property -
This event is centered around the Fire Festival, which takes place on Kitahama Beach on the weekend closest to January 14. One month before the festival, many events are held in nine districts, including "Ichiban Musuko," "Michikiri," "Shichisho Mairi," "Seto Ballet," and "Yannagokko."
| Date and Time: | Saturday, January 14th *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Oiso Kitahama Beach (Sagicho) |
| address: | Oiso Town, Naka District |
| access: | 10 minutes walk from JR Oiso Station |
Miura area
Chakkirako - UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage and Nationally Designated Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property -
Chakkirako is a folk performing art dance performed by women only, which is performed every year on January 15th, the Little New Year, in the Nakazaki and Hanagure districts of Misaki, Miura City, and at Kainan Shrine to pray for good catches, good harvests, and prosperous business.
| Date and Time: | January 15th (Sunday) *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Main shrine, Kainan Shrine (Misaki 4-12-11, Miura City), Nakazaki Dragon Shrine, Hanagure Dragon Palace, Misaki Port area |
| address: | Miura City |
| access: | Get off at Misakiguchi Station on the Keihin Kyuko Line, take the Keikyu Bus bound for Misaki Port and get off at Misaki Port, then walk for 3 minutes |
Prefectural center area
Tana Hachiman Shrine Target Festival - Intangible Folk Cultural Property Designated by Sagamihara City -
This is a traditional event in which the outcome of an arrow shot is used to predict the year's prosperity or misfortune.
| Date and Time: | Friday, January 6th *Ended in 2017 |
|---|---|
| place: | Tana Hachiman Shrine |
| address: | 1-8-28 Suigoutana, Chuo Ward, Sagamihara City |
| access: | From Sagamihara Station on the JR Yokohama Line, take the bus bound for Suigoutana (Route 17), get off at Fureai Science Museum, and walk for 5 minutes |
Fukuda Shrine Hayashi Lion Dance - Yamato City Designated Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property -
The Fukuda Shrine Hayashi Lion Dance has been handed down by the parishioners of Ne-no-sha, which is enshrined under Fukuda Shrine in the Fukuda district of Yamato City, and is said to have been performed since the end of the Edo period.
The 7th New Year Fukuda Shrine Music and Lion Dance Festival
| Date and Time: | Friday, January 7th *Ended in 2017 |
|---|---|
| place: | Yanagibashi Community Plaza |
| address: | 3-12-1 Kusayagi, Yamato City |
| access: | Approximately 15 minutes walk from Sakuragaoka Station on the Odakyu Enoshima Line |
Traditional Firefighting (Luminous Song, Matoi Dance, Ladder Climbing) - Intangible Folk Cultural Property Designated by Atsugi City -
Towards the end of the Edo period, the city of Atsugi organized a "fire brigade," whose role was played by people involved in construction called "tobi-shoku." The Atsugi City Traditional Firefighting Preservation Society continues to preserve the techniques of "kiyari-uta (wooden song), matoi-furi (a traditional Japanese dance), and tako-nori (ladder climbing)," which were born among the fire brigade.
Atsugi City Fire Department New Year's Parade
| Date and Time: | January 8th (Sunday) *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Atsugi City Ogino Sports Park |
| address: | 1500 Kamiogino, Atsugi City |
| access: | From bus stop No. 1 at the north exit of Hon-Atsugi Station on the Odakyu Line, take a bus bound for Tobio Danchi (some buses), Matsukagedai, Kamiogino Shako or Hanbara, get off at Inarigi, and walk for about 10 minutes. |
Sagami Puppet Theater (Haseza and Hayashiza) - Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan -
Sagami puppet theater is a type of puppet theater that has been passed down in the Sagami region since the mid-Edo period, and is characterized by the unique operation method known as "sannin-tsukai," in which three puppeteers work in unison to control a single puppet, and "teppo-sashi."
The 44th Sagami Puppet Theatre Competition (Haseza, Hayashiza, Shimonakaza, Maetoriza, Ashigaraza)
| Date and Time: | Sunday, February 19th, 12:00pm (Doors open 11:30am) |
|---|---|
| place: | Atsugi City Cultural Center Large Hall |
| address: | 1-9-20 Onna, Atsugi City |
| access: | Approximately 13 minutes walk from Hon-Atsugi Station on the Odakyu Odawara Line |
| remarks: | * Advance application required by return postcard |
Western area
Shirahige Shrine Archery Festival - Odawara City Intangible Folk Cultural Property -
At Shirahige Shrine, a New Year's ritual is held every year on January 7th according to ancient tradition to predict the year's bountiful harvest.
| Date and Time: | Saturday, January 7th *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Shirahige Shrine |
| address: | 669 Kofuna, Odawara City |
| access: | From JR Ninomiya Station, take the bus to "Shimonaka Police Station" and walk for about 2 minutes |
Sagami Puppet Theater (Shimonakaza) - National Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property -
Sagami Puppet Theater Shimonakaza is a three-person puppet theater troupe that has been handed down since the Edo period in the Odake district of Odawara city.
Lasca Odawara performance
| Date and Time: | January 15th (Sunday) *2017 event has ended |
|---|---|
| place: | Lasca Odawara 6F U-me Terrace |
| address: | 1-1-9 Sakaemachi, Odawara City |
| access: | Directly outside Odawara Station on the JR and Odakyu lines |
Performance at Otake Community Center
| Date and Time: | January 29th (Sun) 11:00-12:00 |
|---|---|
| place: | Odawara City Otake Community Center |
| address: | 1761 Otake, Odawara City |
| access: | Take the bus from JR Ninomiya Station, get off at "Tunnel Exit" and walk for about 2 minutes |
One million prayers in the world
It is said to have been performed for about 600 years, and Hyakumanben Nembutsu is a rare ritual in which Buddhist chants are performed while rotating a large rosary (302 rosary strings, 9m long) attached to a huge pulley. In addition to chanting, Kagura dances such as lion dances are also performed.
| Date and Time: | February 11th (Sat) - 12th (Sun) |
|---|---|
| place: | Noanji Temple |
| address: | 2499 Mukaihara, Yamakita-cho, Ashigarakami-gun |
| access: | 3 minutes walk from Higashiyamakita Station on the JR Gotemba Line |
When I think about the fact that these events have been passed down and continue to be held in the region for over hundreds of years, I feel a sense of the romance of history.
Starting from now, we will be running a series on "Kanagawa's Intangible Folk Cultural Properties" in several posts. Please look forward to the next one!
