1979 Festival and the World of Gods by Haruo Misumi: Strange Gods, Peculiar Festivals, Noro Priestesses, Yorishiro, Gods of Strange Deeds

??Book Title: The World of Festivals and Deities
??Author: Haruo Misumi
??Photographer: Yoshimasa Watanabe
??Publisher: NHK Books Color Edition
??Size: B6
??Pages: 156P
??Publication Date: November 20, 1979

Author Haruo Misumi, born in 1927, is a Japanese folklorist and performing arts researcher with numerous publications.

Why do people wear terrifying masks?
Why do they smear themselves with mud and dance in strange costumes?

This book is a guide to unraveling mysteries, dedicated to those fascinated by such bizarre festivals. It is not merely a record of festivals.

Over 40 years ago, before local festivals had sold their souls to tourism, a raw aura of the otherworld emanates from every page.

① Witnessing the Overwhelming Transformation
Look at the figures of the Hyongge festival in Shizuoka and the Noro (priestesses) of Okinawa in the images.
What you see is not elaborate entertainment, but the awe-inspiring presence of humans who have become something else. The Tengu and Oni that are motifs for folk toys leap out from wooden carvings and paper clay dolls, and the moments they rampage through living humans as yorishiro (vessels) are captured in vivid color photographs.

② The Stagecraft of Yorishiro
The Dashi (floats) and Hoko (palanquins) that we love, and the festival stages. This book interprets them not as mere decorations, but as antennas (devices) for deities to descend from the heavens.

A simple hut made of bamboo, a stone by the roadside – all these transform into gateways for the gods through magic. Understanding this theory will transform your future festival viewing from watching a stage play to experiencing the otherworld.

③ The Aesthetics of the Losers: Unsubmissive Deities
Chapter 6, The Drama of Those Who Defy the Gods, reveals that behind the glamorous main stage, those who were once defeated and oppressed continue to live on in rituals as Oni and monstrous deities. The unique melancholy and fervor that permeates bizarre festivals across Japan is explained here.

The Izaiho festival in Okinawa, introduced as the origin of theater, has unfortunately not been held since 1978. Although 2024 (Year of the Rat) was a scheduled year for the festival, there are no women to inherit the role of the priestess (Noro), leading to its de facto extinction.

The color photographs published in this book are records of the last moments when this festival was alive. The appearance of a phantom festival that can never be seen again is captured within.

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