Aug. 16, 2021 11:09 pm JST
Posted in: Why are there so many summer festivals in Japan? See in context
The Japanese word for festival, "祭" (Matsuri), was written as "政" (Maturi-events) in ancient Japan. The latter means Politics. In other words, Festival and Politics meant the same thing in ancient Japan.
The First Festival can be found in the story of Japanese ancient mythology about Sun Goddess (Amaterasu) and Storm God (Susanoo).
The story tells us that the Sun Goddess (Amaterasu) hid herself in a rock cave after her unruly brother, the Storm God, disrupted her reign with his series of violent actions that resulted in the death of one of her workers. As a result, the world became dark and suffered from famine and disease without sunlight. An assembly of gods was called, and all eight million gods gathered to discuss solutions to bring back the Sun Goddess. The God of Wisdom (Omoikane) came up with a solution: a festival.
They gathered in front of the rock cave where the Sun Goddess was hidden, singing and dancing with great joy. When the Goddess of Dancing (Amenouzume) danced, her clothing became loose, and she was almost naked. The crowd cheered and laughed loudly. Curious about what was happening outside the cave, the Sun Goddess decided to peek outside. When she moved the rock that covered the cave slightly, the other gods seized the opportunity to move the rock away and bring her out of the cave. Light was restored to the world, and it became a happy land once again.
Japanese festivals are community efforts often accompanied with joyous singing and dancing to pray for its people.
