Mekari

和布刈 Seaweed Cutting

1 Source and/or Related Material

Kojiki, Nihonshoki

2 Author

perhaps Komparu Zenchiku

3 Repertoire

Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō, Kita

4 Synopsis

At the Hayatomo Myōjin Shrine in Nagato Province (Yamaguchi), a ritual is held every New Year’s Eve in which the priest harvests wakame seaweed and puts it on the altar as an offering. Today is the day of the ritual, and the priest (waki) is preparing for the ritual with his retainers (wakitsure). Just then, an old fisherman (maeshite) and some diver ladies (maetsure) appear and tell the priest a story about the origin of the ritual he is about to perform. They reveal that they are the incarnations of the Dragon God and his heavenly maidens, then disappear. The spirit of the seaweed (ai) appears, tells the story again in plain speech, performs an auspicious dance, and dives into the sea. Then, the heavenly maidens (nochitsure) appear and perform a dance. Subsequently the Dragon God (nochishite) also appears, dispersing rough waves and turning the sea calm. As the priest finishes harvesting the seaweed and returns to the shrine, the Dragon God and heavenly maidens disappear. The sea turns rough again as before.