Dragon Dancing in Asakusa, Tokyo
Young and old meet to commemorate an ancient visit of a golden creature
Once a year in Asakusa, located in the northeast edge of Tokyo, a special kind of early spring ritual dance is held. The dance — called “Kinryu-no-Mae” in Japanese — is conducted not by people but by a golden dragon.
Naturally, it’s not a real dragon but the dance commemorates the visitation of a “real” dragon of golden hue that appeared over 1,300 years ago.
The golden dragon of today is merely a diminutive representation of the mighty majestic beast that dropped from the heavens one day long ago. The copy is a mere 15 meters long and weighs in at 75 kilos, while the real one was reportedly 30 meters long and weighed who knows what.
What brought about this unexpected celestial visitation was the discovery of a small golden statuette of a Buddhist deity by two fishermen in the Sumida River on March 18, 628. The statue depicted Kannon, a popular deity known for her compassion in the face of human suffering.
This small statue was enshrined and the area later became a popular spot for pilgrims. Over time, the village of Asakusa expanded and its temple, Sensoji, where the statue was kept, grew in importance.
Had the visiting dragon been of Western extraction, it no doubt would have devoured the two fishermen on the spot and made off with the golden statue and taken it to its private hoard.
Oriental dragons, however, are generally more benevolent. They’re known for dispensing wisdom and happiness rather than fire and poisonous fumes.
Golden dragons are rarely seen because they are often invisible. They only appear at certain moments to mark auspicious events, as one dragon did when the Kannon statue was found.
The golden dragon dance is held in honor of both the dragon’s visit and the statue’s discovery which basically help to create Asakusa. Eight men hold the dragon aloft on poles and twist it about while ladies made up like geishas play music on traditional instruments. The dragon dances three times before it disappears for another year.
All text and photos ©2005 D.Weber
Very festive!!!
March 8th, 2006 at 1:56 amIt almost seems like the dragon is an exclusively Chinese device, but I guess it has it’s place in Japanese culture. Or maybe I’m just not seeing them - is it common?
March 8th, 2006 at 4:42 amCalling this a Japanese tradition is almost as much a sham as calling Kirin/Sapporo/Asahi beers the traditional Japanese alcohol.
http://www.tuvy.com/chinese/info/dragon_dance.htm
March 8th, 2006 at 8:22 amGreat photos, David. And it looks like you had nice weather!
March 8th, 2006 at 9:31 amWell, it’s a good thing I didn’t call it a Japanese tradition, jeff.
Even though it is in the sense that this particular event celebrates the history of Asakusa.
And considering this dance commemorates a typically Buddhist-related event (introduced originally from Korea via China)I don’t think this event warrants a melodramatic labeling of “sham” as it is not trying to pretend to be an exclusively Japanese tradition.
Duo, golden dragon folklore is of Chinese origins.
March 8th, 2006 at 9:31 amThey do a similar thing with a dragon down in Nagasaki. Also Chinese in origin, and everybody mentions that every year.
March 8th, 2006 at 11:00 amYes, alot of Japanese culture comes from the mainland. China. Korea. Just like a lot of US culture comes from Europe.
We are all immigrants, all of us. Even the “homogenous” Japanese race that inhabits Japan…
March 8th, 2006 at 5:03 pmThe origin of the statuette is thought to come from the resistance to Buddhism by conservative Japanese according to some theories. The statuette may have been thrown into the Sumida river several perhaps almost 50 years earlier before its miraclous rediscovery.
There are number of other Buddhist statues that had been found in Japan attributed to divine design which may actually have been just the result of earlier religious vandalism.
March 10th, 2006 at 9:46 am[...] by bryan chamberlain takeaway or deliveryhttp://kfdamrioix.blogspot.com/2007/12/sre-en-mxico.htmlDragon Dancing in Asakusa, TokyoMar 8, 2006 … It almost seems like the dragon is an exclusively chinese device, … Kelly62u: [...]
April 11th, 2008 at 4:32 am