Okina Sarugaku

Japanese: 翁猿楽 - おきなさるがく

In the past, it was also called "Shiki Sanban," but now it is simply called "Okina." It is a type of art centered on a prayer dance that was performed in Sarugaku before the theatrical form of Noh was born, and is considered to be the original art of Sarugaku. As suggested by the fact that the Okina Sarugaku performed at the beginning of Nanto Takigi Sarugaku at the head of Kasuga Omiya Shrine is called "Jushi Hashiri," this art descends from the old Jushi running art, and its origins are thought to date back to the end of the Heian period. Okina Sarugaku has almost no dramatic plot, and the whole piece is considered a kind of ritual, but it was the main part of Sarugaku art until the end of the Kamakura period.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

古くは〈式三番〉ともいわれ，現在は単に〈翁〉という。劇形態の能が生まれる前から猿楽が演じていた祝禱の舞を中心とする芸で，猿楽本来の芸と考えられている。南都薪（たきぎ）猿楽の冒頭に春日大宮社頭で演じられる翁猿楽を〈呪師走り〉と呼んでいることが示唆するように，この芸は往昔の呪師の走り芸の系統をひき，その源は平安末期に始まると推定される。翁猿楽に戯曲的な筋はほとんどなく，全体が一種の儀式とみられるが，鎌倉末期まではこれが猿楽の芸の主体をなすものであった。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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