Vol 17. The Rise of Popular Arts in Premodern Japan: Music
Bitchu Kagura (ca. 1830)
A kagura is a Shinto religious ritual dance that has its origins in an ancient Japanese myth. According to Kojiki, a Japanese book of founding myths from the eighth century, the sun goddess Amaterasu one day became upset with her brother, the storm god Susanoo, and hid herself in a cave. The other gods, unable to convince her to emerge and restore light to the world, finally decided to dance and sing in front of her cave. Curious about all the commotion, she emerged and returned daylight to the world. The song and dance of the gods later became the kagura. This recording is the kagura of Nariwa, a town in the old province of Bitchu; like all kagura, the lyrics tell a story about the ancient gods of Japan.