06.08.2012 / World Bulletin
The matsuri month
August. While we’re all busy with our summer holidays and the Olympics, in Japan the matsuri month has just begun. What’s matsuri, though? Basically, it’s a shared experience – a festive event based on a sense of inebriation, something similar to those ancient and popular sacred processions.
For once, let’s leave Kanto (Tokyo’s area) and look north, towards the Tohoku region, where the Three Big Festivals – Tohoku Sandai Matsuri – are held every year.
Nebuta Matsuri, from August 2 to 7, is hosted in Aomori, the town of never-ending forests, and it’s a five-day parade featuring enormous lantern floats accompanied by the unbridled sound of the typical taiko drums and dances. Lanterns have been made in a year time using washi (Japanese paper); they often depict gods, historical or mythical figures, and even popular manga characters! If you want to take part, you’ll need to wear a Haneto dancer uniform – you can easily rent one at the local shops.On August 3 starts yet another lantern parade – in this case, the lanterns are lit up with real candles put on the top of 12-meter-tall poles. It’s Kanto Matsuri, in Akita – kanto actually means “pole with lanterns”. Watching the graceful agility of kanto boys is like attending an incredible show of extreme ability and concentration.
Chronologically speaking, the last festival is Tanabata Matsuri – held from August 6 to 8 in Sendai. The parade features some deeply symbolic objects and decorations: a fishnet of good omen for the next harvest, trashbags for cleanliness, cranes for longevity…
In its many forms, masturi represents an authentic expression of Japanese mysticism, mixing arts, dances, music and a Confucian sense of community. One of the best ways to experience the many-sided uniqueness of the Japanese tradition.
[Sara Francesca, infocre.wordpress.com]
Links
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5158.html
