Study on the Characteristics and Effects of Ritual Landscapes in the 'Hatsuuma Festival' at Takekoma Shrine, Rikuzentakada City

摘要

This research aims to study the characteristics and effects of ritual landscapes through an understanding of relationships such as those among the content of rituals, settlement space, and local community.The case study is the "Hatsuuma Festival" held regularly at the Takekoma Shrine in the city of Rikuzentakada every six years.The study includes a review of previous literature, video recordings of the "Hatsuuma Festival" held in 2002, interviews of related attendees, and implementation of participant observations at the 2014 "Hatsuuma Festival." Apart from the religious rituals at the shrine and the mikoshi procession in the "Hatsuuma Festival," folk art votive offerings are conducted according to seven ritual groups.Certain changes were incorporated in the 2014 Hatsuuma Festival.The traditional route for the procession was reduced to less than half because of disaster damage, while folk art processions, excluding the daimyo procession, were omitted.Although, the characteristic atmosphere of the settlement was weakened and the festival was conducted on a slightly different landscape, specific elements nurtured by the land, such as nature, historical culture, occupations, and local communities were emphasized, and ritual landscapes that symbolized the region were exhibited.Moreover, the ritual landscape initiated communication between spectators and performers, and, among spectators, collaborative gatherings were observed as people were invited to places where allcouldgather.