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48-624: The most important Service is the Kagura Service ( Kagura zutome ). This service is the masked dance that is performed around the Kanrodai where Tenrikyo Church Headquarters – located in Tenri City, Japan – is situated. Hashimoto cites three meanings behind the performance of the Kagura Service–to represent God's creative power at the time of human conception and thus inspire humankind to live

96-570: A line in order of mention from left to right as one faces the altars. Many followers perform their Morning and Evening Services at their homes, often using only their wooden clappers or no musical instrument at all. Usually after the Morning Service, two songs from the Teodori are practiced. Another type of service is the onegai zutome , a prayer service or a petition service. This is a type of service that asks distinctively for God’s intervention for

144-433: A specific purpose. The most common form of a prayer service is when a community makes an appeal or petition to God to save a person from a particular illness. Other forms of a prayer service is that of asking God that a particular church activity, such as a spiritual retreat, a pilgrimage trip, or even a church association event that involves recreation, goes well. The prayer service is performed together with two instruments on

192-541: A street corner Kokan is said to have chanted "Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto! Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto!" to the accompaniment of the hyoshigi. In 1863, Tsuji Chusaku chanted the same words along with the hyoshigi, though not to do missionary work as Kokan had done, but to pray for his sister Kura. In 1864, several early Tenrikyo followers decided to pay their respects to Ōyamato Shrine by playing musical instruments, dancing, and chanting "Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto! Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto!" as others had previously done. Unbeknownst to

240-594: Is tsukinamisai, which translates to "a regular or recurring monthly festival." During the Monthly Service, which is the central liturgy of a Tenrikyo church, the entire text of the Mikagura-uta ("The Songs for the Service") is sung to specific choreography and instrumental accompaniment. The monthly Service performed at Tenrikyo Church Headquarters is different from Monthly Services performed at other churches due to

288-499: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Hyoshigi The hyōshigi ( 拍子木 ) is a simple Japanese musical instrument , consisting of two pieces of hardwood or bamboo often connected by a thin ornamental rope. The clappers are played together or on the floor to create a cracking sound. Sometimes they are struck slowly at first, then faster and faster. Hyōshigi are used in traditional Japanese theaters , such as Kabuki and Bunraku theater, to announce

336-415: Is different from the Kagura Service, where the same section is performed seven times in sets of three. The Seated Service embodies "the truth of six fundamental aspects of divine providence," which can be understood to mean the "six fundamental aspects of God's providence during creation" or "six fundamental aspects of God's providence in the human body." The Teodori refers to the part of the Service that

384-562: Is sung, danced, and played to the text of the Eight Verses of the Yorozuyo and the Twelve Songs, or the fourth and fifth sections of the Mikagura-uta . A performance of the Teodori requires six dancers, three males on the left and three females on the right, who form a single line facing the shrine. The six Teodori dancers perform exactly the same hand and foot movements in unison, expressing

432-574: The Ofudesaki , the Mikagura-uta , and the Osashizu . Phrases in the scriptures define Jiba as simply "the origin," and more specifically "the origin where God began human beings," "the origin of this world," and "the origin of all things." In the context of Tenrikyo's creation narrative , the Jiba is said to be the spot where Izanagi-no-Mikoto and Izanami-no-Mikoto, the models of husband and wife, conceived

480-454: The hyoshigi (wooden clappers). The length of the service was determined by burning an entire incense stick. The Place for the Service, which might be regarded as a sanctuary, was not built until 1864, some twenty-six years after Tenrikyo's founding in 1838. In the autumn of 1866, Nakayama taught the first section of the Mikagura-uta, along with the melody and hand movements. This section

528-499: The Home Ministry issued "Directive No. 12," which called for stricter government control over Tenrikyo's activities. In light of the directive, Tenrikyo officials changed two of the women's instruments: On the fiftieth anniversary of Nakayama Miki's death in 1936, followers decided to revert as much as possible to the instruments that she had originally taught her followers. The kotsuzumi, shamisen, and kokyū were restored, while

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576-549: The Joyous Life , to reconfirm humankind's relationship with God and the universe , and to realize the importance of living by God's original intention for humankind. The Kagura Service is performed by ten people, five males and five females, who surround the Kanrodai. Each person represents a different divine providence that participated in the creation, wearing a unique kagura mask and dancing to unique hand movements (see diagram to

624-559: The cosmological significance of the spot around which the Headquarters was constructed. The monthly service at Headquarters begins with the Kagura Service followed by the Teodori, and is always performed on the twenty-sixth of each month. A monthly service at other churches begins with the Seated Service followed by the Teodori, and can be performed at any fixed day of the month determined by each church (e.g. third Sunday, every month on

672-427: The taiko and surigane continue to resemble their gagaku counterparts. No major changes have been made to the instruments since 1936. Though gagaku is not performed during the Service proper, it is sometimes performed during the offering ritual and the prayer ritual which precede the Service. Gagaku became a part of Tenrikyo's ceremonies because of Tenrikyo's early association with Shinto. The first time gagaku

720-493: The 8th). From late 1888 through the following year, a number of churches were established in various districts, and some of them requested permission to perform the Service when their sanctuaries were completed. In response, the Divine Directions made it clear that the Kagura Service could not be performed anywhere other than at the Jiba for the Kanrodai . The kagura masks were not to be worn—or even merely placed in front of

768-522: The Kagura Service is exactly the same as that of the Seated Service (the first, second, and third sections of the Mikagura-uta ); the only difference between them is the number of repetitions of the third section. The first section is repeated twenty-one times, the second section is performed only once, and the third section is performed seven times in sets of three, amounting to a total of twenty-one times. The kagura masks were first produced around or before 1874 by Nakayama's brother, Kyosuke Maegawa, but

816-537: The Mikagura-uta, the Eight Verses of the Yorozuyo, and taught it to her followers. Then in 1874, the kagura masks, completed some time previously, were collected by Nakayama. Several events transpired in 1875. In that year, Nakayama identified the Jiba, the precise spot where, according to the Tenrikyo's creation story, humankind was conceived 900,099,999 years before the founding of the teaching on October 26, 1838. Nakayama taught

864-576: The Morning and Evening Services the maximum number of instruments is reduced to four – hyoshigi , chanpon , surigane , and taiko – and a kazutori (counting implement) is added in order to keep track of the repetitions of Mikagura-uta Section One, which is performed 21 times. The earliest instrument to be associated with Tenrikyo prayer, even before the Service was composed, is the hyoshigi. In 1853, Nakayama Miki sent her youngest daughter Kokan to Naniwa (modern-day Osaka ) to do missionary work there. On

912-538: The Service for Rain. Jiba (Tenrikyo) In the Tenrikyo religion , the Jiba (中心) is the axis mundi where adherents believe that God created humankind . The spot is located in the center of the main sanctuary at Tenrikyo Church Headquarters , located in Tenri, Nara , Japan . It is marked by a wooden pillar called the Kanrodai (甘露台). The significance of Jiba is described in all three Tenrikyo scriptures –

960-522: The Songs for the Kagura . Shozen Nakayama, the second Shinbashira (spiritual and administrative leader of Tenrikyo), has suggested three categories for these Services: Only the Service for Safe Childbirth and Service for Germination are still performed today. The only other Services that have supporting evidence indicating they were ever conducted at all are the Service against Smallpox, the Service for Fertilizer, and

1008-421: The beginning of a performance. The kyogen -kata usually plays the hyoshigi at the start of comedic plays. It can be used to attract the attention of the audience by conductors for theater and even athletic and juggling performances. Hyōshigi are also used to stress confusion, and other dramatic moments, in the play. It is also often used to signal the starting or the end of parts of festivals, especially in

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1056-486: The concept of coincidentia oppositorum in the Western philosophical tradition. For example, Kunitokotachi-no-Mikoto, the providence of water, and Omotari-no-Mikoto, the providence of fire, are opposing elements which are placed on opposing sides, north and south respectively. The Seated Service takes the place of the Kagura Service at places of worship besides Church Headquarters. The Seated Service and Kagura Service use

1104-538: The directing of the mikoshi . Hyōshigi is combined with other traditional Japanese instruments in mikagura-uta , or cycle of songs, which is characteristic of the Tenrikyo religion . The clapping instrument was also used in Kamishibai to gather children so that the Kamishibai man could sell candy and entertain them with his story. The wooden percussion instrument was also used by night-watchmen when patrolling

1152-539: The first children. The scriptures also assert that Jiba is the place where God the Parent and the everliving Oyasama reside. The Jiba is closely associated with Tenrikyo's understanding of salvation . The core ritual of Tenrikyo's liturgy , the Kagura Service , is performed around Jiba . The Osashizu and stories from Anecdotes of Oyasama refer to Jiba as the place where one can request one's own salvation or

1200-459: The followers in the melody and dance of the Service goes: "When the sacred songs of twelve chapters were completed, Oyasama told her attendants: "These are the songs for the Service. Try singing them to the best tune you can find." Each of them sang to his own tune. After listening to it, Oyasama said, "Thank you for your singing, but none of them will do. You should sing them this way." She sang loudly Herself. Then She told her attendants: "These are

1248-412: The followers, they were disrupting an important seven-day prayer at the shrine, and the priests from the shrine soon seized the instruments and had the followers detained. The instruments that were seized were a taiko, two suzu (bells), seven hyoshigi, and a tebyoshi. Based on the historical record and certain Ofudesaki verses referring to musical instruments, Nakayama Miki may have specified

1296-419: The masks he made have since been lost. However, it is assumed that the later masks preserve the essential features of the original masks since the Osashizu instructed followers to model new masks after the original ones. The masks currently in use are made of wood, but earlier ones seem to have been made of papier-mâché. Hashimoto notes that the divine providences of the Kagura Service are oriented to reflect

1344-414: The meaning of the songs through the dance. The choreography of the Teodori is called Otefuri. The Teodori also requires the full set of musical accompaniment: six men's instruments ( hyoshigi , chanpon , surigane , taiko , kotsuzumi , and fue ), three women's instruments ( koto , shamisen , kokyū ), and one or two singers ( jikata ). The original Japanese term for "Monthly Service"

1392-408: The metaphysical principle of oneness in two ( futatsu hitotsu ), which is the idea that the universe exists by integrating two opposing elements. The opposing elements do not become identical, nor does one element become subsumed by the other; rather, the opposing elements complement each other and retain their distinctive qualities while also creating a more complete entity. Oneness in two is likened to

1440-498: The morning and evening services at Church Headquarters are based on sunrise and sunset, as are those at other places of worship. During the Morning and Evening Services, the same hand movements and the same sections of the Mikagura-uta are performed the same numbers of times as in the Seated Service. However, the Morning and Evening Services use a reduced set of instruments – surigane , chanpon , hyoshigi , counter ( kazutori ), and taiko – which are placed next to one another in

1488-401: The nine musical instruments of the Service starting around 1875. Nakayama taught how to play the women's instruments – koto , kokyu , and shamisen – in 1877. The Service was first performed with the full set of musical instruments on 30 September 1880. Ever since Nakayama Miki's passing in 1887, the fue, chanpon, hyōshigi, and koto have remained unchanged to the present day. However,

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1536-437: The other instruments have undergone changes. In 1888, the first Shinbashira, Nakayama Shinnosuke, went sightseeing at Nikkō and attended a gagaku performance at Nikkō Tōshō-gū . Influenced by the instruments he saw, he replaced certain Service instruments, which he felt were unimpressive, to their analogues in the sanko (三鼓, 'three drums') of the gagaku orchestra – gakudaiko , gakushōko , and kakko : In 1896,

1584-481: The performance of the Teodori but not the Kagura Service. On the 26th of each month, a Service called Yohaishiki is held at churches and missions away from Church Headquarters to coincide with the Monthly Service at Church Headquarters. The Morning and Evening Services are performed every day at all Tenrikyo places of worship: Church Headquarters, regional churches, mission stations, and fellowships. The times of

1632-420: The performers—at local churches, though the use of all the other implements including the musical instruments was allowed. Local churches' monthly services, performed on the days sanctioned by Church Headquarters, include the seated service—which is performed by six people seated on the raised floor performing the same hand movements as those used in the morning and evening services—followed by the Teodori. Out of

1680-499: The police. In the wake of this incident, Oyasama made alterations in the wording of the first and third sections of the Mikagura-uta, though she made no change to the hand movements: In addition to the Services already mentioned, Nakayama taught eleven different Services ( juichi-tori no tsutome 十一通りのつとめ) to her followers for specific purposes. Each Service has a unique set of words and hand movements performed in place of Section One from

1728-505: The right and table below). The performers of the Kagura Service are chosen from the inner circle of the administrative staff at Tenrikyo Church Headquarters. The ten performers and the musical instrument players switch roles on a monthly basis. However, the roles of the Shinbashira and his wife remain the same throughout all performances and that is to represent Kunitokotachi-no-Mikoto and Omotari-no-Mikoto respectively. The song text for

1776-526: The salvation of others, and accordingly an important religious practice for adherents is to make pilgrimages there. The Kanrodai (甘露台) is a hexagonal stand that marks the Jiba. Adherents believe that when the hearts of human beings have been adequately purified through the Service , a sweet dew would fall from the heavens onto a vessel placed on top of the stand. This article related to religion in Japan

1824-415: The same manner as the other monthly services. The performance of a Monthly Service requires a minimum of six dancers (three men and three women), six men's instruments ( hyoshigi , chanpon , surigane , taiko , kotsuzumi , and fue ), three women's instruments ( koto , shamisen , kokyū ), and one or two singers ( jikata ). The New Year's Service ( gantansai ), held on the first day of

1872-469: The same text (first, second, and third sections of the Mikagura-uta) and the same instrumentation. However, unlike the Kagura Service, the Seated Service is performed by six people, three men and three women, sitting in a line facing the shrine and performing the same hand movements as one another. In the Seated Service, the third section of the Mikagura-uta is performed three times in sets of three, which

1920-402: The service was performed for the first time with the full set of instruments, it might be said that this marked the provisional completion of the followers' implementation of what oyasama had taught about the service. In 1881, the bottom two layers of the stone Kanrodai, which was to serve as the center for the Service, were completed. The following year, however, those layers were confiscated by

1968-415: The singing and the dancing after having all the attendants try on their own" ( Anecdotes of Oyasama, #18) In 1869, Nakayama started the Ofudesaki (one of Tenrikyo's three scriptures), which explained the significance of the Service as the basis for salvation. In 1870 she taught her followers the second section of the Mikagura-uta, which begins, In the same year, Nakayama composed the fourth section of

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2016-448: The songs of truth. So you must dance to the truth. Try dancing the best way you can." Each of them arranged the dance and showed it to Oyasama. Afterward, She said: "Thank you for your dancing, but no one danced to the truth. You should dance in this way. You should not just dance. You should dance the truth." So saying, She stood up and performed the dance movements Herself in order to teach the attendants. In this way, Oyasama Herself taught

2064-441: The third section of the Mikagura-uta, completing the entire set of songs for the Service as initially composed. This section was initially worded, Also in the same year she taught the hand movements for eleven different services to address specific issues. In 1877, she began to teach the stringed instruments for the service. She also urged her followers to perform the service. It was on the lunar calendar date of 26 August 1880 that

2112-509: The twelve monthly services of the year, two of them carry particular significance and are referred to as "grand services" ( taisai, "grand festival"). The spring grand service held in January commemorates the withdrawal of the physical life of the foundress (January 26), and the autumn grand service held in October commemorates the founding of Tenrikyo (October 26). However both services are performed in

2160-417: The upper dais – the wooden clappers and the counter – with the other members of the congregation praying from the worship hall. Nine musical instruments are employed in the performance of the Monthly Service – hyōshigi (wooden clappers), chanpon (cymbals), surigane (small gong), taiko (large drum), kotsuzumi (shoulder drum), fue (bamboo flute), shamisen , kokyū , and koto . During

2208-415: The year, is performed exactly in the same manner as a monthly service. The Memorial Service ( mitamasai ), dedicated to ancestors and predecessors of the Tenrikyo faith, is performed at Church Headquarters twice every year, once in the spring and once in the autumn. Memorial Services have also been held to commemorate the passing of Shinbashiras. These services consist of a monthly service like gathering with

2256-414: Was associated with Tenrikyo's ceremonies was in 1888 during the observation of Nakayama Miki's first anniversary of her death. The earliest account of the Service occurs in the year 1863, when follower Chusaku Tsuji prayed for the recovery of his sister's insanity. Nakayama taught Tsuji and other followers at the time to chant the divine name, "Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto! Namu, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto!" while beating

2304-408: Was originally worded, In January 1867, Nakayama composed Songs One, Two, and Three of the Mikagura-uta. By August, she wrote the rest of the Twelve Songs (十二下り目), completing the fifth section of the Mikagura-uta. Over the next three years, She devoted her time to adapting melodies and dance movements to these songs as well as teaching them to her followers. An account of how Nakayama began to instruct

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