Shirabyoshi
Encyclopedia
Japanese traditional dance
There are two types of Japanese traditional dance: Odori, which originated in the Edo period, and Mai, which originated in the western part of Japan. Odori grew out of Kabuki drama and is more oriented toward male sentiments. Mai is traditionally performed in Japanese rooms instead of on the stage...
(the dances themselves also called shirabyōshi) dressed as men. The profession of shirabyōshi developed in the 12th century. They would perform for nobles
Kuge
The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto until the rise of the Shogunate in the 12th century at which point it was eclipsed by the daimyo...
and high-ranking samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
, and at celebrations.
They are sometimes referred to as courtesan
Courtesan
A courtesan was originally a female courtier, which means a person who attends the court of a monarch or other powerful person.In feudal society, the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together...
s in the English language, but that term refers to a high-class prostitute, so this is rather incorrect. By nature they were performers. Though some shirabyōshi would give birth to nobles' children, this was not their purpose.
History
Shirabyōshi came about in the late Heian periodHeian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
. It was a time of cultural change, so in order for some women to survive they turned to performing. After their inception, Japan experienced a shirabyōshi boom in which many women became shirabyōshi because of their popularity. A shirabyōshi was always a woman who dressed in men's attire, performing dances for the gods. The name shirabyōshi meant "white rhythm", partly because of their make-up, and because their songs were slow and rhythmic. They were required to be educated, including being able to both read and write - they were talented poets, musicians, singers, and dancers.
It has been said that the shirabyōshi culture greatly influenced Noh
Noh
, or - derived from the Sino-Japanese word for "skill" or "talent" - is a major form of classical Japanese musical drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Many characters are masked, with men playing male and female roles. Traditionally, a Noh "performance day" lasts all day and...
drama by bringing forth kusemai
Kusemai
Kusemai was a popular Japanese form of song and dance with a strong irregular beat - emphasis is placed on the beat at the expense of the melody....
, an unorthodox form of dancing and introducing it to Noh.
Attire and appearance
Shirabyōshi were recognizable for the outfit they would wear, which was ShintoShinto
or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
-inspired. It truly was a man's outfit, as it featured:
- A tate-eboshi hat, worn by samuraiSamuraiis the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
- A tachiTachiThe is one type of traditional Japanese sword worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan.-History and description:With a few exceptions katana and tachi can be distinguished from each other if signed, by the location of the signature on the tang...
, a samurai's sword - Red hakamaHakamaare a type of traditional Japanese clothing. They were originally worn only by men, but today they are worn by both sexes. Hakama are tied at the waist and fall approximately to the ankles. Hakama are worn over a kimono ....
, worn primarily by men - White suikan and red suikan, a male Shinto outfit
- A kawahori hand fan, which men carried
Shirabyōshi wore the trademark white facial make-up that would centuries later come to be associated with geisha
Geisha
, Geiko or Geigi are traditional, female Japanese entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese arts such as classical music and dance.-Terms:...
, completely covering their face and neck and painting new eyebrows higher on the forehead. Their hair was rather simple: it was long (sometimes nearly to the floor) and pulled back into a loose ponytail secured with a ribbon called a takenaga.
Music
Shirabyōshi songs were mostly based on Buddhist prayers. The songs were usually slow and rhythmic, with great meaning in the words. They also would sing imayo songs, which were poems using images of nature to convey meanings of circumstances in their lives. Trademarks of their music included their voices, the drumTsuzumi
The is a Japanese drum of Chinese/Indian origin. It consists of a wooden body shaped like an hourglass, and it is taut, with two drum heads with cords that can be squeezed or released to increase or decrease the tension of the heads respectively...
and the flute
Fue
Fue is the Japanese word for flute, and refers to a class of flutes native to Japan.Fue or FUE may also refer to:*The French University in Egypt*The Future University in Egypt*Follicular unit extraction, a technique of harvesting hair...
.
Shizuka
ShizukaShizuka Gozen
Shizuka Gozen , or Lady Shizuka, one of the most famous women in Japanese history and literature, was a shirabyōshi of the 12th century, and a mistress of Minamoto no Yoshitsune...
, commonly referred to as Shizuka Gozen, was the concubine and lover of Minamoto no Yoshitsune
Minamoto no Yoshitsune
was a general of the Minamoto clan of Japan in the late Heian and early Kamakura period. Yoshitsune was the ninth son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, and the third and final son and child that Yoshitomo would father with Tokiwa Gozen. Yoshitsune's older brother Minamoto no Yoritomo founded the Kamakura...
, the tragic hero of many folk legends. She was possibly born in 1168, and is popular in folk legends herself. She and Yoshitsune met and fell in love, but by the time she had become pregnant, Yoshitsune was on the run for his life. She was captured and taken to the Shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
, Minamoto no Yoritomo
Minamoto no Yoritomo
was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate of Japan. He ruled from 1192 until 1199.-Early life and exile :Yoritomo was the third son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, heir of the Minamoto clan, and his official wife, a daughter of Fujiwara no Suenori, who was a member of the...
in Kamakura
Kamakura, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
, Yoshitsune's older brother. There she gave birth to a son, who was, according to some versions of the tales, promptly killed by Yoritomo<--The Shizuka article says otherwise.-->. In some tales she was then forced to perform a dance for Yoritomo and his wife Hōjō Masako
Hojo Masako
was the eldest child of Hōjō Tokimasa by his wife Hōjō no Maki, the first shikken, or regent, of the Kamakura shogunate. She was the sister of Hōjō Yoshitoki, and was married to Minamoto no Yoritomo, the first shogun of the Kamakura period...
at a temple celebration, where she sang a song of praise for her love Yoshitsune. This greatly angered Yoritomo, and he intended on having her put to death but his wife begged for Shizuka's life. She was freed and sought to follow Yoshitsune, but she learned of his death. She became a nun and died in 1189. Her song is famous and is still sung today by geisha.
Giō and Hotoke
The story of GiōGIO
GIO is a computer bus standard developed by SGI and used in a variety of their products in the 1990s as their primary expansion system. GIO was similar in concept to competing standards such as NuBus or PCI, but saw little use outside SGI and severely limited the devices available on their...
and Hotoke
Hotoke
The Japanese noun Note that the very same kanji 仏 in modern Japanese can be also read futsu, but is often used as an abbreviation for the word "furansu", or France...
, featured in the Heike Monogatari, is long and involved, but basically tells of the most famous shirabyōshi Giō, who had won the heart of Taira no Kiyomori
Taira no Kiyomori
was a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he...
, being ousted by a younger and more talented shirabyōshi named Hotoke. Kiyomori cruelly sent Giō away, which grieved her greatly, and Hotoke was constantly ridden with guilt. A year later, Giō was asked to perform a dance for Hotoke at Kiyomori's command, who actually intended on humiliating her. In her grief and humiliation, Giō, her sister and their mother became nuns seeking for a happier life. A few years later, the guilt was too great for Hotoke and she too became a nun. She asked for forgiveness from Giō, who willingly forgave her and the four women lived out the rest of their days in prayer.