詳細

大人神楽(おおひとかぐら) ŌhitoKagura

15分版 15min

2時間版 2hrs

【大人神楽】
 大人神楽は、宮崎県北部山間部に位置する日之影町の大人地区にて継承されている。集落には岩井川(いわいがわ)神社、大人(おおひと)神社が鎮座し、夜神楽は岩井川神社の例祭にて奉納される。岩井川神社の創建年代は定かではないが、永正6年(1509)再建の棟札が残るといわれ、それ以前より祭祀がなされていたと考えられる。
 大人神社の秋祭りでは宮神楽が奉納される他、この地を統治していた武将(ぶしょう)甲斐宗攝(かいそういせつ)の供養のため奉納されたのが始まりとされる、南九州唯一の農村歌舞伎「大人歌舞伎(おおひとかぶき)」の公演が行われる。
 日之影町には「岩井川(いわいがわ)系」「深角(ふかすみ)系」「岩戸(いわと)系」「四ヶ惣(しかそう)系」の4つの系統の神楽が残り、大人神楽は「岩井川系」に当たり、町内唯一の夜神楽である。
 あやと呼ばれる白い布で道を清め、神を迎える「あや祓い」や、神楽の始まりに祭具を手にした奉仕者殿(ほしゃどん)や氏子がアーチ状のオンノメカズラを潜り、跨ぐ禊祓(みそぎはらえ)の儀式「すがもり」など、随所に古い形を残す。このすがもりは、夏越祓(なごしのはらえ)の茅(ち)の輪くぐりと同義である。
 令和2年(2020)現在、神楽の奉仕者殿は25名おり、他の地域からの加勢も積極的に受け入れている。県内外より神楽公演依頼も多くあり、総力をあげて歴史ある民俗芸能の継承に取り組み、若手の育成にも力を入れている。

【Ōhito Kagura】
Ōhito kagura has been passed down for generations in the Ōhito region of the town of Hinokage, which is located in the mountainous northern section of Miyazaki Prefecture. Iwaigawa-jinja and Ōhito-jinja sit within this community, and night kagura is performed at the annual festival at Iwaigawa-jinja. It is unfortunately not possible to ascertain exactly when Iwaigawa-jinja was built, but a munafuda (plaque installed to mark construction or repairs to shrine buildings) dated 1509 and denoting the reconstruction of the shrine building remains on the premises, we can tell that religious ceremonies must have been performed on the site some time before then.
Besides performing miya kagura at the autumn festival at Ōhito-jinja, there are also performances of “Ōhito kabuki,” the only rural form of kabuki in southern Kyushu, which is said to have originally been performed as a memorial service for General Kai Sōsetsu, who ruled over the region.
There are four distinct styles of kagura remaining in Hinokage, namely the “Iwaigawa,” “Fukasumi,” “Iwato,” and “Shikasō” styles, with Ōhito kagura falling within the “Iwaigawa” style, and being the only night kagura performed in the town.
The influence of ancient customs can be seen all over this style of kagura, such as the “aya barai,” a ritual to purify the road to the shrine and welcome the gods using a white cloth called an aya, and the “sugamori,” a ritual to purify everyone involved in the kagura, in which hoshadon (kagura performers) and worshippers step over and under an arched arrangement of onnome kazura (wild grapevines). The sugamori is performed in a similar way to the chinowa kuguri rituals performed in the summer.
As of 2020, there are 25 hoshadon (performers) for this style of kagura, and the region is also actively accepting help from other areas to help preserve the art. The hoshadon get many requests to perform kagura from all over the country, and are putting a lot of effort into training young performers to ensure the protection of this historic element of regional folk culture.