Hon-machi 3-chome’s lion dance features Kaga-style lions, red and white heads, staff performers, and traditions from the Machida and Shibukawa schools.

This lion dance is a traditional performing art meant to ward off misfortune, ensure good health, and pray for a bountiful harvest. The lion-dance tradition, found across Asia, was introduced from China around the 8th century and gradually developed into its own Japanese form. In Kanazawa, the “Koroshi-jishi,” a performance in which a giant lion is defeated, began spreading in the late Edo period. The staff techniques used to confront the lion evolved into various schools, with the Hanbei style—popularized by the swordsman Machida Hanbei of Jiozen Village in the mid-Meiji era—becoming the dominant tradition.

Hon-machi 3-chome uses two lion heads: a White Lion,said to have been crafted in 1866 by Dengichi,a master shrine carpenter from Kanazawa’s Zaimokucho,and a Red Lion of unknown origin.The performance includes a staff dance called “Awase,” in which dancers wielding a naginata and paired swords face off between the two lions—White and Red—struggling to seize the lion while the two lions confront each other. In the end, the dancers join forces and defeat both lions, giving the performance a dramatic narrative.

As the troupe parades through the neighborhood, they perform “Awase” whenever they encounter lion-dance groups from other districts. Representatives from each town—two dancers—take part in the exchange performance, strengthening ties between communities.

Programme

Departing from Nunoichi Shrine around 7 a.m., the procession travels through the Hon-machi district of Nonoichi City while performing the lion dance. Around 6 p.m., it enters Hon-machi Street on the Former Hokkoku Kaido Road, and returns to Shōdaiji Temple at around 9 p.m.

Text as provided by the organiser(s).