OSAKA, Oct 10 (News On Japan) –
Every autumn, the Kishiwada Danjiri Festival is held, and this time we’re taking a historic tour of the pageant’s key websites!
At the Kishiwada Danjiri Museum, three precise danjiri floats from the Edo interval, which have been utilized in previous festivals, are on show. These floats are adorned with intricate carvings, a few of which remodel in design when considered up shut! Visitors also can expertise the joys of standing atop the roof as a “daikugata” dancer or play the drums inside a danjiri. Additionally, the tour contains well-known places alongside the danjiri procession route, similar to Kishiki Shrine and Kishiwada Castle.
Today, we’ve come to Kishiwada City, Osaka Prefecture. The streets behind us are spectacular, aren’t they? The ambiance is wealthy, harking back to scenes from the Edo interval. We’re standing close to the previous Kishu Highway, near Kishiki Shrine. This space, though not formally designated as a preservation district for conventional buildings, retains its allure and will simply be acknowledged as such.
The pleasure of the Kishiwada Danjiri Festival, held on September tenth and fifteenth, nonetheless lingers within the air. Today, we’ll discover places linked to the danjiri pageant. This pageant, identified for its highly effective shouts and the swift motion of the huge danjiri floats, introduced crowds to Kishiwada this 12 months as soon as once more.
Our investigation begins on the Kishiwada Danjiri Museum. Even outdoors the pageant interval, guests can expertise the fact of the pageant right here. The museum homes not solely massive danjiri floats but additionally smaller ornaments and decorations, like banners and hats. Visitors can intently observe the detailed carvings on the floats, which date again practically 180 years to the Edo interval. The danjiri floats are unpainted, permitting the craftsmanship to stay because it was, polished by hand with out fashionable instruments.
Among the historic floats is the Nomamachi Danjiri, created in 1901. The museum additionally homes a fair older float, the Gokenyama Danjiri, which dates again over 200 years. In the Edo interval, these floats needed to move by means of the citadel gates, which have been too low for the tall danjiri. To navigate this, the roofs of the floats would decrease as they entered the citadel grounds.
In addition to seeing these floats, guests can expertise the varied roles concerned within the pageant, such because the dancers (daikugata) and those that pull the danjiri. It takes round 400 to 500 folks to drag a single danjiri, and prior to now, the quantity might attain as much as 600 or 700. The floats sprint at full velocity by means of the streets, making the danjiri pageant actually an exciting occasion.
After exploring the museum, our tour continues to Kishiki Shrine, a key location alongside the danjiri procession route. This shrine not solely performs a major position in the course of the pageant however is also referred to as a spot for prayers associated to marriage. The shrine has robust connections to Kishiwada Castle, and the custom of the pageant is deeply intertwined with the city’s historical past.
Finally, we arrive at Kishiwada Castle, a symbolic construction that was first established in 1597. The present citadel was rebuilt in 1954 after the unique construction was destroyed by lightning within the Edo interval. The citadel grounds provide gorgeous views, and the encompassing gardens are designed in a method impressed by Chinese army technique. Visitors also can view historic artifacts, together with a uncommon portrait of Akechi Mitsuhide, one of many few surviving photos of the well-known samurai.
This historic tour presents a deeper understanding of the Kishiwada Danjiri Festival, permitting guests to understand not solely the pageant’s vitality but additionally its cultural and historic significance. Why not discover the roots of the pageant and expertise its wealthy historical past for your self?
Source: YOMIURI