Experience the origins of Shinshu’s lion dance under the fully blooming cherry blossoms ~the Lion dance at Ruriji temple



Date; The second Saturday and Sunday of April every year
Location; 812 Ojimasan, Takamori Town, Shimoina District, Nagano Prefecture
Access; From Shinjuku in Tokyo, it takes about 4 hours to reach Takamori by express bus bound for Iida. From there, it’s a 15-minute walk. If you’re coming from the Osaka area, take the express bus from Nagoya.
By train, take the limited express from Tokyo to Okaya, then take the Chuo Line to Tatsuno. From there, transfer to the Iida Line and get off at Ichida or Motozenzōji Station. The trip takes about four and a half hours. From there, it’s about a one-hour walk.

This article based on 14th, April, 2024

A Trip to the Ina Valley in Search of the Origins of the Roadside Stall Lion Dance

All of the photographs shown here depict lion dances from the southern region of Nagano Prefecture (Shinshu), commonly known as the Ina Valley. A distinctive feature of these dances is that massive floats, representing lions, parade through the town. The lion dance at Ruriji Temple is the origin of all of these traditions.

A “yatai lion” is essentially a smaller version of a festival float covered with a curtain and fitted with a lion’s head at the front. Since it has wheels, several people can get inside to move it, and it can also be used to transport necessary items. For more details, please refer to the article below.
https://discoverdeeperjapan.com/2021/08/30/shishi-dance-in-ruri-dera-temple/

Head to Ruriji Temple

Here, we’ll introduce a route that involves walking uphill from a train station. The nearest stations are Ichida and Motozenzōji; while Motozenzōji requires a slightly longer walk, it has more restaurants and other eateries. From there, you simply walk straight up the country road.

You’ll sometimes find convenience stores in places where you’d think, “Here?” They’re truly the town’s aid stations.

Around noon. The event is scheduled to start at 1:00 p.m., but several booths have already been set up at the temple, offering everything from food to sundries. A fair number of people have gathered. It’s no wonder—this lion dance is very popular.

Messenger Monkey

The flowers are in full bloom. Actually, down below, the peak blooming season has already passed, but here at an elevation of 900 meters, it’s right at its peak right now.
Meanwhile, a bunch of monkeys were hopping around—some big, some small, and quite a few of them. Truth be told, at Hiyoshi Shrine near Ruri-ji Temple, the messenger is a monkey. That’s why monkeys play an important role in this lion dance. Here, children dressed as monkeys are seen paying their respects at the shrine.

Beginning

A curtain is draped over the assembled lion’s body, and preparations are nearing completion.

There’s a line in a song that goes, “Ina has seven valleys.” Below are the villages; across the way are the mountains.

Following the children in their festive attire, the monks make their entrance.
Once the monkey begins organizing the audience, the festival is finally about to begin.

Dance of Ryo-oh

2:00 p.m. The “Ryō-ō no Mai” dance is performed first. Although this dance had been discontinued for quite some time, a group of volunteers revived it to commemorate the 900th anniversary of the temple’s founding.
“Ryō-ō” is a piece from the traditional court dance and music tradition.

The lion dance is finally about to begin

Two demons suddenly burst onto the scene and intimidate the audience. The lion dance is finally about to begin. The demons’ role is to keep the audience from coming forward.

Then, the star of the day, Utenno, makes his appearance. He awakens this sleeping giant lion and leads it from Ruri-ji Temple to Hiyoshi Shrine.

“His shoes don’t quite fit right,” the monkey says as he adjusts them. The monkey does things like this, too. Quietly, quietly, Utenō faces off against the lion. Then, when Utenno steps on the cord, the lion, suddenly awakened from its slumber, begins to rampage. The tempo of the music also shifts to a faster pace.

At last, Utenō, accompanied by the lion, exits the gates of Ruri-ji Temple. After walking down a slight slope from Ruri-ji Temple and turning at a right angle, he enters the approach to Hiyoshi Shrine.

Walking along the approach path beneath the flowers in full bloom

“The blossoms are in full bloom this year—it’s the best yet,” said an organizer with a delighted smile. The demon roared, intimidating the audience. The monkey, with a composed expression, cleared a path along the approach.
The melody repeated over and over. The elegant lion dance of Utenno.

Arrival at Hiyoshi Shrine

After about an hour, they arrive at the grounds of Hiyoshi Shrine, bringing their long, long journey to an end. Even the children who had been shouting along with the oni wore expressions of satisfaction despite their exhaustion. Under the cherry blossoms in full bloom, this year’s theater of dreams has come to an end.

Ending

It’s already past 3:00 p.m. To get home, you have to go to the central station nearby, called Iida. From here, you head down another long, long hill.

Reference https://mg.minami.nagano.jp/group/ruriji (Japanese)