| Description |
‘Sada Shin Noh’ is a performing art expressed by the people’s dance-like movements to musical instruments such as drums to re-enact the power of the deity with which the people are blessed. It is always performed on September 24th and 25th every year on a special stage, called Gakuden, constructed within the precincts of the Sada Shrine which is the tutelary presence of the community.
During these two days at Sada Shrine, people replace the rush mats, called Goza, with new mats on which the deities seat themselves. The replacement re-enacts the deities’ power.
During the performance of ‘Sada Shin Noh’, a ritual dancer performs with Goza in his hand. The Goza are purified by this dance. People consider that ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is indispensable to the re-enactment of the deities’ power.
‘Sada Shin Noh’ is also performed at other neighbouring shrines, whenever requested. The repertoire, choreography and music in ‘Sada Shin Noh’ are traditionally fixed. ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is accompanied by flute music, three types of drums and singing. The players sit down around the stage, and the dancers perform at the centre of the stage.
The repertoire performed in this performing art is classified into three categories.
The first seven numbers belong to Category I. The performers do not wear masks, and perform the ritual dances with swords, holy wooden sticks, and bells in hand, depending on the number. In the ritual dance, Gozamai, the dancers perform with the rush mats for the deities in their hands in order to purify them before serving them to the deities.
Category II has the three ritual dances performed with a mask of an old man. It is said that these dances were performed in Kyoto in the early seventeenth century.
Category III has twelve numbers called Shin Noh which are performed with a mask of a deity. Japanese myths are depicted through these dances.
This composition of dances is a typical example of Japanese performing arts. However, the main feature of ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is the dance of purification of the deities’ seats.
People believe that ‘Sada Shin Noh’ should be regularly performed in order to re-enact the power of the tutelary deities in the community. ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is natural and nothing special in the daily lives of the people around Sada Shrine who share the worship. ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is an interaction between people and the deities that supports and guarantees a rich and peaceful future for the people, their families, and the community, making the social and cultural functions of “Sada Shin Noh” significant.
The people who worship Sada Shrine as a tutelary presence are eager to transmit ‘Sada Shin Noh’ to the future. They have practiced diligently to acquire the skills needed for their performances, and have been publicly approved by the people of the community.
Those who are in charge of the transmission of ‘Sada Shin Noh’ are first, the members of the Association for the Preservation of Sada Shin Noh. They are ordinary citizens engaged in respective jobs, but they practice regularly and have acquired the traditional performance formula. They bear a direct responsibility to perform it in a traditional style in public.
Second are Shinto priests, who maintain the Sada Shrine. They have the responsibility of offering the opportunity and place for the public performance of ‘Sada Shin Noh’.
Third are people inside and outside the community, who consider it necessary to continue transmitting ‘Sada Shin Noh’ to the future. They appreciate the public performances of ‘Sada Shin Noh’, and make financial contributions to the Shrine and the Association from time to time.
The people of the community have long regarded ‘Sada Shin Noh’ as an important performing art. Designated as Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property by the National Government in 1976, it has been widely recognized in Japan as an important element of the Japanese cultural heritage that indicates the transition of the Japanese lifestyle.
The transmitting group and community consider ‘Sada Shin Noh’ as one of their own distinctive cultures of which they are proud. By transmitting and performing it in public, it offers them an opportunity to renew a sense of identity with the community and society, thus contributing to its continuity. |
| Social and cultural significance |
‘Sada Shin Noh’ is a performing art expressed by the people’s dance-like movements to musical instruments such as drums to re-enact the power of the deity with which the people are blessed. It is always performed on September 24th and 25th every year on a special stage, called Gakuden, constructed within the precincts of the Sada Shrine which is the tutelary presence of the community.
During these two days at Sada Shrine, people replace the rush mats, called Goza, with new mats on which the deities seat themselves. The replacement re-enacts the deities’ power.
During the performance of ‘Sada Shin Noh’, a ritual dancer performs with Goza in his hand. The Goza are purified by this dance. People consider that ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is indispensable to the re-enactment of the deities’ power.
The main feature of ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is the dance of purification of the deities’ seats.
People believe that ‘Sada Shin Noh’ should be regularly performed in order to re-enact the power of the tutelary deities in the community. ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is natural and nothing special in the daily lives of the people around Sada Shrine who share the worship. ‘Sada Shin Noh’ is an interaction between people and the deities that supports and guarantees a rich and peaceful future for the people, their families, and the community, making the social and cultural functions of “Sada Shin Noh” significant.
The people of the community have long regarded ‘Sada Shin Noh’ as an important performing art. Designated as Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property by the National Government in 1976, it has been widely recognized in Japan as an important element of the Japanese cultural heritage that indicates the transition of the Japanese lifestyle.
The transmitting group and community consider ‘Sada Shin Noh’ as one of their own distinctive cultures
of which they are proud. By transmitting and performing it in public, it offers them an opportunity to renew a sense of identity with the community and society, thus contributing to its continuity. |
| Transmission method |
The people who worship Sada Shrine as a tutelary presence are eager to transmit ‘Sada Shin Noh’ to the future. They have practiced diligently to acquire the skills needed for their performances, and have been publicly approved by the people of the community.
Those who are in charge of the transmission of ‘Sada Shin Noh’ are first, the members of the Association for the Preservation of Sada Shin Noh. They are ordinary citizens engaged in respective jobs, but they practice regularly and have acquired the traditional performance formula. They bear a direct responsibility to perform it in a traditional style in public.
Second are Shinto priests, who maintain the Sada Shrine. They have the responsibility of offering the opportunity and place for the public performance of ‘Sada Shin Noh’.
Third are people inside and outside the community, who consider it necessary to continue transmitting ‘Sada Shin Noh’ to the future. They appreciate the public performances of ‘Sada Shin Noh’, and make financial contributions to the Shrine and the Association from time to time.
‘Sada Shin Noh’ has been transmitted from generations to generations by the people of the community. The people become blessed through the re-enactment of the power of the tutelary deities, and it is believed that the entire community would be secure if the people worship and respect these deities.
The following measures are taken for the transmission of the knowledge and skills of ‘Sada Shin Noh’.
(i) The Association for the Preservation of Sada Shin Noh holds a practice session in which skilled people instruct the youths in Gekuden of the Sada Shrine every Tuesday night from June to September every year. Elementary school pupils, who are expected to be future successors, also participate in these regular practices.
(ii) Matsue City makes subsidizations to ensure the transmission. It also spreads its significance to the public by displaying its materials and resources at the local museum.
(iii) Shimane Prefecture produces detailed video-recordings of all the repertoires of ‘Sada Shin Noh’.
(iv) The National Government is ready to support the following activities at the request of the Association, Matsue City, and Shimane Prefecture; research projects, repairing or buying tools and facilities, training projects of successors, workshops for the public and documentation. |
| Community |
Association for the Preservation of Sada Shin Noh |
| Type of UNESCO List |
Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity |
| Incribed year in UNESCO List |
2011 |
