Takasago (play)
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is a traditional
Noh is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. It is Japan's oldest major theater art that is still regularly performed today. Noh is often based on tales from traditional literature featuri ...
play. It is considered a very auspicious story, involving a loving and long-married couple. The play was formerly known as or . During the play a singer chants, "From Takasago, sailing over the bay, sailing over the bay, the moon goes out with the tide, past the silhouette of Awaji Island, far over the sea to Naruo, arriving at Suminoe, arriving at Suminoe", referencing several places in what are now Hyōgo and
Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nara ...
s. This is considered a classic Noh chant, taken from a classical poem signifying harmony between husband and wife.


Plot

A priest from the Kyushu Aso Shrine arrives at Takasago. The spring weather is pleasant and the pine trees are beautiful. In the distance he hears a bell toll. An elderly couple arrive and begin to sweep the area under the pine bower. The old man recites a poem from the ''
Kokin Wakashū The , commonly abbreviated as , is an early anthology of the '' waka'' form of Japanese poetry, dating from the Heian period. An imperial anthology, it was conceived by Emperor Uda () and published by order of his son Emperor Daigo () in abou ...
'' (Collection of Ancient and Modern Poems), a collection of ''waka'' poetry. The poem describes Takasago and Sumioe , paired pine trees that, according to legend, will remain together for eternity. He explains that these wedded pines are a symbol of the marital relationship. The priest says that all relationships, indeed all life, falls short of the ideal expressed in the poem. At this point, the old couple reveal that they are the spirits of the Takasago and Sumioe pines, and they set sail across the bay in a small boat. As the tide goes out, the priest also sets sail, at which point the "From Takasago, sailing over the bay..." chant is recited.


Takasago Shrine

According to Takasago Shrine in
Takasago, Hyōgo file:Takasago City Office.jpg, 260px, Takasago City Hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 86,888 in 36,828 households and a population density of 2500 persons per km2. The to ...
, there have been ''aioi no matsu'' twin pines within its grounds since the
Shinto shrine A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion. The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...
was established. A pair of trees called Jō (尉 "old man") and Uba (姥 "old woman") – a Japanese form of
Darby and Joan Darby and Joan is a proverbial phrase for a married couple content to share a quiet life of mutual devotion. Usage ''The Nuttall Encyclopædia'' defined the phrase as "a married couple celebrated for their mutual attachment", the ''Random Hous ...
– bearing the legend, "We ''
kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...
'' reside in these trees to show the world the way of marital virtue" stand within the shrine.


Notes


References

{{reflist Noh plays