The sword dance of Iwate

The dance, at first sight, brings to mind Oriental martial arts, South Indian kathakali and Sri Lankan kandyan dance. In fact, the journey of its evolution has certainly been varied. Oni Ken Bai, which roughly translates into 'ogre sword dance', is believed to have travelled from Babylon to Assyria, India and China, and then to Japan through En no Gyuujya, the founder of Shugendou (a fusion of Japan's indigenous mountain worship with Buddhism and Taoism). Over time, and with Buddhist influences, its form has evolved and changed.

With its Japanese roots in the northern Tohoku region of Iwate, this stylised ritual brings together graceful arm movements, flashing swords, tossing heads and a set of unique steps based on a Shinto ritual. Accompanied by the chanting of sutras that carry a message of compassion, Oni Ken Bai is performed to energise the aura of the land.

With each 'trampling' movement by the dancers, the negativity that treads the earth is quelled, even as prayers for peace, happiness and abundance are being intoned. To this end, the dancers must perform continuously and in a state of deep concentration, undistracted by stray thoughts and ego. They enter into a heightened spiritual state much like that witnessed in so many devotional dance forms around the world, a state sometimes described as being at one with the gods.

Performed at official ceremonies, memorial services and festivals, Oni Ken Bai is considered part of Japan's intangible cultural property. Children in this region are taught it in elementary and junior high school, in a bid to keep it alive. There is, today, an added significance to the preservation of this art form from Iwate, a large prefecture in the Japan's northern Tohoku region – in March 2011, it was hit by the most powerful earthquake ever to hit the country.

Although the number of dancers can vary, there are usually eight in a group, and they are accompanied by a taiko drummer, flutists and bell ringers. Apart from the movements and pace which see the dancers move in smooth loops and twirls often linked by their swords, their costumes and masks also make for a dramatic spectacle.

The dancers wear menacing-looking masks in five different colours – red, black, yellow, green and white – which represent seasons and deities, and the dance revolves around the white mask. The unique costume includes the mask, a wig, chain mail, gaiters, white split-toe socks, straw sandals, a sword, a fan, and a vajra(Buddhist ritual object).

Since the earliest times, humans have believed that good and evil forces co-exist, and that each must be interacted with appropriately, with gratitude to the good, and the banishment of evil. Oni Ken Bai, in all its spectacle and sound, is as simple as this.

source- Esplanade Outdoor Theatre

Watch the performance video (performed at Esplanade Outdoor Theatre, Singapore during 'A Tapestry of Sacred Music Festival):