. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
. koma-inu 狛犬 / karajishi 唐獅子 "Chinese Lion" and legends .
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shishigashira 獅子頭と伝説 Legends about a lion head
shishimai 獅子舞 Legends about a lion dance
. shishigashira 獅子頭 lion head . .
- Introduction -
sanbiki shishimai 三匹獅子舞 lion dance with three lion heads
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- - - - - ABC List of the prefectures :
......................................................................................... Aichi 愛知県
犬山市 Inuyama city
Before the Shrine Ishizukuir Jinja was built there was a festival with Shishigashira 獅子頭 a lion head dance, but the lion head performer always fell down at the mound. Thus the Lion Dance was stopped.
The Deity of the Mound did not like noisy events.
Now they lead a specially decorated horse, 花馬 Hanauma, during the festival.
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Aichi 知多郡 Chita district 南知多町 Minami-Chita town
It is made of strong paper and about 2 meters high.
If the head priest covers it and walkes around with it, even dogs bark in surprize and try to interfere with the ritual.
In former times there were no dogs in the village.
Then one day a new settler brought a dog and many villagers got ill and even died. So the dog was killed.
......................................................................................... Akita 秋田県
大仙市 Daisen city 堀見内 Horiminai // 伝染病
. Shishimai prevents densenbyo 伝染病 pandemics .
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Akita 仙北市 Senboku city 角館町 Kakunodate town
A few years ago a group of 獅子舞 Shishimai dancers came to Akita city.
That evening they did not perform but went to town to enjoy themselves.
The villagers heard a lot of people singing and thought the dancers had come back.
They went out to welcome the dancers, but nobody came.
Maybe something had happened to the dancers ?
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Akita 羽後町 Ugo town
A traveling artist of the 獅子舞 lion dance group had been killed in a fight.
The villagers made a grave for him and prayed, they also erected a grave marker.
When the fields were re-arranged, the grave marker fell into a field, which became cursed by the killed lion dancer.
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Akita 山本郡 Yamamoto district 二ツ井町 Futatsui town
On the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, the special ササラ踊りの獅子頭 Sasara Lion Dance Heads are put to rest for a year at the Kodama family home.
Once they could not take it in and the heads were given to another family.
But the heads did not want to stay there and came back.
Lion heads are not supposed to be taken over bridges. The bearers have to carry them and walk through the river.
......................................................................................... Chiba 千葉県
山武郡 Sanbu district
If someone is bewitched by a fox, the villagers have to perform a Shishimai dance with four or five people, dancing until they fall down.
......................................................................................... Fukui 福井県
福井市 Fukui city
冬野の猿田彦神社 Fuyuno no Sarutahiko Jinja
......................................................................................... Fukushima 福島県
耶麻郡 Yama district 高郷村 Takasato village
If the shishigashira 獅子頭 lion head hears the sound of water, it wants to get out of its box.
Usually the sound of water is drowned by the drums and flutes during the festival.
One day the villagers were drunk during the festival and forgot about this.
They passed by a waterfall.
The lion head heard the sound of water and got out of the box, jumping into the waterfall.
Since then this is called the 神楽滝 Kagurataki Waterfall (Kagura Dance Waterfall).
......................................................................................... Kagawa 香川県
大川町 Okawa town
Once upon a time, the rest place for the festival palanquin of 富田八幡 the Tomita Hachiman Shrine was across the river.
One day it had rained a lot and the river was overflowing.
One of the lion heads was swept away before reaching the other shore.
The other lion head begun to weep in pain.
......................................................................................... Mie 三重県
. kotengu 小天狗 Karasu Tengu 烏天狗 .
At the Shrine for 一宮大明神 Ichinomiya Daimyo Jin there is a place called 猪田 Ida where kotengu 小天狗 the minor Tengu lives.
During the Shrine festival, many Tengu come from the nearby area to celebrate and mix with the villagers.
They also use a shishigashira 獅子頭 lion head to show their appreciation.
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Mie 鈴鹿市 Suzuka city // お獅子様
The shishimai 獅子舞 lion dance is performed every three years from the first of February to the 19th of April.
If お獅子様 the honorable lion bites into a light summer Kimono robe, the person will stay healthy and wise.
......................................................................................... Miyagi 宮城県
Miyagi 石巻市 Ishinomaki city
. Toogoro kitsune 藤五郎狐 a fox named Togoro .
and the lion dancer 勘作 Kansaku.
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Miyagi 加美郡 Kami district 加美町 Kami town
The Shrine palanquin of 熊野神社 Kumano Jinja, containing the 獅子頭 lion head, is carried to the beach and floated in the water.
Once it floated to the beach at 浜市村 Hamaichi village.
It was picked up by the hunter 八十郎が藤原重光 Fujiware no Shigemitsu. He took it upstream of the river 鳴瀬川 Narusegawa to venerate it.
Since then the fishermen of Hamaichi do shiogori 潮垢離 water ablutions in the sea water.
......................................................................................... Nagano 長野県
飯田市 Iida city
. Echigojishi 、越後獅子 lion dance from Echigo .
When the actors with their 越後獅子 Echigojishi climbed up a steep gorge on the way,
they saw a fox taking a nap and threw stones at it.
A while later they came to a large estate and performed their lion dance.
The daughter of the estate prepared a good meal for them and let them have a bath.
When the bath water felt cold, they had a good look.
The house and the girl had disappeared and there was only a large barley field.
The good meal they had eaten was only bafun 馬糞 horse manure.
. kitsune densetsu 狐と伝説 fox legends .
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Nagano 下伊那郡 Shimo-Ina district 高森町 Takamori town
aojishi, aoi shishi 青獅子 blue lion head
The priest was suspicious and asked for a lion head.
The carver took water ablutions under the waterfall and then started to work.
Finally the lion head was finished, but it was not well done, so he threw it into the waterfall basin.
The lion head turned all blue and begun to grunt.
A cooking pot cracked, thunder was heard and a lot of rain fell.
This was later called nabe-wari 鍋割 "cracking a pot"
and the blue lion head was used for amagoi 雨乞い rain rituals.
. amagoi 雨乞いと伝説 Legends about rain rituals / Regenzauber .
......................................................................................... Niigata 新潟県
村上市 Murakami city 大栗田 Okurida hamlet
. アマメハギ Amamehagi monster .
a little male Yokai monster. He has mushrooms on his head which he uses to attack things.
......................................................................................... Saitama 埼玉県
北葛飾郡 Kita-Katsushika district 庄和町 Showa town 西金野井 Nishi-Kananoi hamlet
Nishikananoi no shishimai 西金野井の獅子舞
This is the beginning of the Lion Dance in the village.
Later when there was a long rain, they performed a lion dance and the rain stopped.
The lion dance performers coming down the river were then venerated at 香取神社 Katori Shrine. In a ritual for seven days and nights they became the messengers of the Deity and thus the lion dance started.
. Kashima Shrine 鹿島神宮 Kashima Jingu - Katori Jinja .
......................................................................................... Tochigi 栃木県
Tochigi 真岡市 Moka city // 大日堂の獅子舞 Dainichi-Do Hall
The lion dance will prevent illness.
Once the lion dancers were asked to perform to ward off densenbyoo 伝染病 pandemics.
Members of the lion dance group never get a pandemic illness.
. densenbyo 伝染病と伝説 Legends about pandemics .
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Tochigi 宇都宮市 Utsunomia city 関白町 Kanpaku town
- quote -
It is a three-lion dance with two-male and one-female lions performed in group of three people wearing a lion mask.
The Miko-mai, played only by Kampaku lion, is a unique dance also named a dance for ogre extermination, and it has a considerably dramatic scenario. It is said to have become a dance to pray for devil extermination and national peace and security.
It is dedicated at Shrine Kampakusan Jinja on the first Saturday of August every year.
- source : utsunomiya-8story.jp/en -
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Legend says when 藤原利仁 Fujiwara no Toshihito, a nobleman of the Heian period, was killed, his body was supposed to be burried here.
But suddenly the sky became all dark.
When they performed 獅子舞 a lion dance, the weather changed to sunshine and they could finish the burrial with proper rituals.
......................................................................................... Tokyo 東京都
. Oonyuudoo 大入道 O-Nyudo Monster .
During the rituals for ujigami 氏神 the clan deity on September 15 they perform 獅子舞 a lion dance.
On this day, seven chidren were kamikakushi 神隠し spirited away.
Mother has to hold her children by the hand to prevent this from happening.
Sometimes it rains balls in 12 colors from the sky and an O-Nyudo moster with a large club appears.
. ujigami 氏神 clan KAMI deities / Ubusuna sama .
......................................................................................... Yamagata 山形県
最上郡 Mogami district 金山町 Kaneyama town
. Lion Heads offered to 不動堂 the Fudo Hall .
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Yamagata 柳原 Yanagihara
During a fire at 柳原集落 Yanagihara, one of the lion heads flew out and to safety
But since lion heads are treasures of the village, maybe a villager had taken it to safety.
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Yamagata 長井市 Nagai city // 三匹獅子舞
. Inari 稲荷と伝説 Legends about the Inari Fox Deity .
> Once an old Inari fox Deity with ears of rice appeared and this year they had a bountiful harvest.
Since then the villagers perform sanbiki shishimai 三匹獅子舞 a lion dance with three dancers,
one of them with a black lion head, to show their gratitude.
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- reference : nichibun yokai database 妖怪データベース -
amamehagi アマメハギ (05) type of Namahage 生剥.
"Amame” refers to corns that form on the feet due to sitting still in seiza position for a long time beside a fireplace or brazier.
“Amame hagi” means “removal of corns”.
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. koma-inu 狛犬 / karajishi 唐獅子 "Chinese Lion" .
. Kaido highway legends 街道と伝説 - - ABC list .
. animals and their legends 動物と伝説 - - ABC list .
. plants and their legends 植物と伝説 - - ABC list .
. Persons, People, Personen and their legends - - ABC list .
. Legends about Kobo Daishi Kukai - 弘法大師 空海 - 伝説 .
. Japanese legends and tales 伝説 民話 昔話 - Introduction .
- Yookai 妖怪 Yokai Monsters of Japan -
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