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FESTIVALS OF JAPAN: Finding the mythological heart of an ancient land

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

photo：A performance of "Kagura" dance at the beginning of the annual Takachiho Kagura festival on Nov. 17, 2012 (Asahi Shimbun file photo) A performance of "Kagura" dance at the beginning of the annual Takachiho Kagura festival on Nov. 17, 2012 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

photo：Humorous choreography to convey wishes for a happy marriage and easy birth feature in the annual Takachiho Kagura festival in Miyazaki Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Humorous choreography to convey wishes for a happy marriage and easy birth feature in the annual Takachiho Kagura festival in Miyazaki Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

photo：Lit torches are used to pray for a good harvest and the health of local residents at the opening ceremony of the Shujo Onie festival in Oita Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Lit torches are used to pray for a good harvest and the health of local residents at the opening ceremony of the Shujo Onie festival in Oita Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

photo：Local people dressed as demons perform a dynamic dance during the Shujo Onie festival in Oita Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Local people dressed as demons perform a dynamic dance during the Shujo Onie festival in Oita Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

photo：Dancers parade through streets on May 3, 2012, during the Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Dancers parade through streets on May 3, 2012, during the Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka Prefecture. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

photo：Dancers from Sendai join the Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka Prefecture on May 3, 2012. (Asahi Shimbun file photo) Dancers from Sendai join the Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka Prefecture on May 3, 2012. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

A long, long time ago in a place far, far away, the grandson of the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami picked a rural spot to straighten out the troubled and corrupt land. That place was Takachiho, a town in Kyushu's Miyazaki Prefecture, which to this day celebrates his mythological arrival, bearing ears of rice no less.

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