Location: Tane, Futatsui-machi, Noshiro City
Site(s) of performance: Kumano Shrine and other places in the community
Date(s): May 3
Designation: City-Designated Intangible Folkloric Cultural Property
Category: Shishimai and Bangaku
In the old days, Tane Bangaku was performed as an offering at the annual festival of Kumano Shrine. According to legend, the daughter of the local lord fell seriously ill, but after the prayer and performance of bangaku at the shrine, the daughter recovered. After that the bangaku was performed every year for the villagers’ safety and bumper crops in the village. Until recently, the shishimai (lion dance) went around the community with marching music in the evening before the main festival and performed the gongen shishimai in the prayer hall of the shrine, before circulating around the community again. Only the shishimai’s visit to houses in the community is practiced today.

About Shishimai and Bangaku