Traditional Festivals are Fading Out in Japan
Japan has a centuries-long tradition of "matsuri" or festivals all across the country, many associated with local shrines and temples and quite a few connected with legends, historical events and local customs. But now, some of the festivals are gradually fading.
Japanese matsuri is in a sense more than a festival often involving miniature shrines called "Mikoshi" that requires manpower to transport. No manpower, no mikoshi. If not mikoshi, there can be decorative structures built for the occasion that also require manpower to move around.
Some historical festivals are fading for shortage, if not luck, of manpower.
In the Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa, a festival called Kiriko Matsuri was registered Japan Heritage this year. This festival features a giant lantern called kiriko for several tens of young men to pull. Here again, shortage of manpower makes it hard to carry on the festival in its entirety. In some communities, kirikos are placed stationary or sold to raise funds for the upkeep of the shrine. So, heritage or not, Kiriko Matsuri is dead at least 60 communities.
Why the change?
Scores of reasons may be there to explain the changing trend. Shortage of manpower is one but the only reason. It is often asked whether people have grown less community-conscious. Village elders talk about good old days when people flocked on every trivial occasion. People were aware of the need of maintaining bonds of unity to survive natural calamities.
Japan sits on huge seismic belts and is located along the passages of typhoons. Natural disasters have a way of uniting people. What better way would there be than festivals to pull people together? Bonds are tighter woven by sharing hardships. Well, that explains why people dare shoulder mikoshis, miniature shrines, pull kirikos, sharing weights together.
And yet, traditional festivals are fading. But the trend is hopefully temporary. Freak weathers continue. Self-help has its limits; mutual help goes a long way. The Japanese will learn in the long run what it takes to build bondage and what it means to be part of the community.
