About O no Mai
This ritual performance has been passed down through generations of parishioners at Hiromine Jinja Shrine in the Hikasa district of Wakasa. It is believed that O no Mai spread via trade with the former capitals of Nara and Kyoto between the eleventh and the fourteenth centuries. The variant at Hiromine Shrine is one of seventeen O no Mai dances preserved at shrines across the Wakasa region. The style, length, and costumes of the O no Mai vary by location, but it is commonly performed by a single male dancer wearing a long-nosed mask and wielding a polearm.
Gion Festival at Hiromine Shrine
Hiromine Shrine holds its Gion Festival on the last Sunday of July. On the eve of the festival, ritual performances are held on the shrine grounds and at designated neighborhood locations. A bofuri-daiko (literally “stick twirling and drums”) routine showcases pole-wielding participants who perform acrobatic choreography to loud odaiko drumbeats, and another performance showcases children playing similarly large drums.
On the main festival day, a ceremony is first held at the shrine’s main sanctuary. Once this ceremony is finished, O no Mai and Shishimai (“Lion Dance”) are performed in front of a portable shrine (mikoshi) which has been placed on the shrine precincts. The O no Mai dance is performed by an adult who wields a ceremonial polearm while dressed in a happi coat and wearing a long-nosed mask. The routine features stylized movements, including thrusting the polearm toward the four corners of the portable shrine. The Shishimai dance represents the energetic frolicking of a shishi (legendary guardian lion). The shishi costume is worn by two people who control the front and back of the lion, respectively.
