Legend has it that traveling dancers of bugaku, the ritual dance of the imperial palace, visited Hachimantai Town in northern Japan during the construction of Dainichido, the pavilion of the shrine, in the early eighth century. The ritual performance of Dainichido Bugaku derives its name from this story, but it has evolved significantly since then, incorporating local characteristics as elders transmitted the art to the young across the four communities of Osato, Azukisawa, Nagamine, and Taniuchi.
The dances have a history of more than a thousand years (Nara period), and despite being interrupted for nearly sixty years in the late eighteenth century, the dances, some of which may include children or masks, are still performed on January second from sunrise to noon at shrines. According to Yamaji Kōzō, Dainichido Bugaku arose during and after the Nara Period (CE 710-794) and Mid-Heian Period (CE 794-1185) as government support for Shinto temple complexes (originally ordered by Emperor Shōmu (CE 701-756)) started to decline, and local citizens took residence in local communities, preserving genres such as Dainichido Bugaku as folk arts.
On the second day of the year, the 2 January, the people of these communities make their way to the shrine. The shrine is where nine sacred dances are performed in a prayer for happiness in the coming year. Some of the dances involve masks, including the imaginary Shishi, which can be seen in myths, and others have child dancers, reflecting variations among the four groups. These dances use flutes and taiko, with variations among the four groups. Throughout history, the order and number of dances have changed, with the current order consisting of the Gongen-mai, Koma-mai, Uhen-mai, Tori-mai, Godaison-mai, Kōshō-mai, and Dengaku-mai dances. Masks include images of Shishi and Vairocana.
Hachimantai Town residents gather every year around the Dainichido Bugaku stage on this occasion. Dainichido Bugaku is significant to people in Hachimantai, since it prays for the happiness of a new year. Not only that, but the practice deepens a sense of belonging to the local community. Though the Dainichido Bugaku was interrupted in the late eighteenth century, the people of Hachimantai are proud of the restored tradition. This is the spiritual core of their solidarity. The nine repertoires that are transmitted among the four communities of the city are divided among the elderly who transmit their assigned repertoires to the younger children in each community. The four communities have transmitted Dainichido Bugaku from generation to generation by transferring their repertoires from generation to generation.
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