Lion Dance Across the Sea - Ehime Prefecture - circa 1973

Lion Dance Across the Sea - Ehime Prefecture - circa 1973

Around 1973, in a fishing village in Ehime Prefecture, there was a unique custom of lion dancers crossing the sea on a boat to a neighboring village. This "lion dance across the sea" was a humorous yet solemn ceremony, performed on a boat while being rocked by the waves. It was not a mere entertainment, but a sacred exchange between communities separated by the sea, a time of faith in which the power of nature and human activities become one. For people living in the harsh natural environment of the sea, this dance was a blessing for life and a symbol of prayer for good catches and safety. However, with the rapid economic growth of Japan, the development of transportation networks, and the exodus of young people to the cities, these customs gradually disappeared. Today, the practice is no longer practiced and is only preserved in records. However, the image of a lion dance on a boat, swaying in the waves, still leaves a deep impression as a memory of a time when people and na
ture used to be close. The moment when the sea, the gods, and people created a single landscape quietly calls into question the preciousness of local culture for us today.