小正月に大白倉集落で行われる行事「バイトゥ」。その名が修験道の言葉に遡ると言われる祭りは、小さな集落が伝えて来たとは思えないほどの豪快な火祭り。「ほんやらどう」や「鳥追い」同様に、その年の豊作を願う予祝行事で、この20数年ほど、お手伝いしています。
“Baitu” is a ceremony held in Ohshirakura Village during the Little New Year. Its name goes back to the language of Shugendo (Japanese mountain asceticism), and it is a dynamic fire festival that does not appear to have been inherited by a small village. It is a celebration event to pray for a good harvest of the year. I have supported for about 20 years.
See the finale of "Baitu" held in 2001. A hut built over half a day is set on fire to predict a good harvest.
祭りの準備は秋に始まります。山に自生するケヤキの中から、目星を付けていた大きく、しっかりした枝を切り出し、保管します。
1月14日の朝から、雪を積み上げた土台に、その枝を刺します。半日掛けて、主に身軽な男衆が枝を登って、とんがり帽子の形の巨大な掘立て小屋の骨組みを組み上げます。秋に、大きな枝が揃わなかった年は、小屋のボリュームが小振りになることもありました。
骨組みに、縛ってまとめた稲藁を掛けて行きます。細い枝の上で作業する人を下から見上げると、蜘蛛のようで、まさにスパイダーマン。てっぺんまで稲藁で覆い、雪を遮る屋根が出来ると、囲炉裏に火を付けます。雪に濡れた枝や藁を乾かし、床にゴザを敷き、午後遅く準備完了。
祭りの開始は、午後７時を回った頃。少しずつ人が加わり、大きな小屋ができた年だと、70-80人近く入って見えたときもあります。囲炉裏には、小正月の予祝行事に付き物のスルメを刺し、豚汁や餅、みかん、甘酒、そして、米どころの日本酒がふるまわれます。どんど焼きのような小正月のお焚き上げで焼いたスルメを食べると、１年間、風邪を引かないという言い伝えがあります。ござの下は雪、壁も雪、外気温は氷点下ですが、中は、たき火の威力で、そこそこ暖かい。
９時近くまで続く宴のハイライトは、集落の男衆が歌う天神囃子。ゆったりとした調べに身を任せると、時間を遡るような雄大さです。手締めで、宴が終わると、小屋の中にいた参加者は退散。小屋に火を放ちます。半日掛けてつくり上げた小屋は、あっという間に大きく燃え上がり、暗い集落を明るく照らします。炎が真っすぐ燃え上がる年は豊作です。
雪という風景、雪国という背景で、火はいっそう明るく強く感じられ、これから深くなる雪の向こうにあるはずの春や希望を予感させます。
豪雪地とは言え、豪雪の年ばかりでもなく、バイトゥの手伝いでお伺いした20年の中では、豪雪がすごすぎて中止の年もあれば、雪がまったく積もらず中止の年もありました。そして、それ以上に厳しかったコロナ禍。終息が見え始めた23年の小正月、バイトゥの再開はなりませんでした。中心である区長の怪我で、ケヤキの切り出しが厳しくなり、僕がいろいろと手配を掛けましたが、戸数８軒の高齢者集落は、コロナ禍でモチベーションが落ちていました。何とか、協力して再開したい。
Preparations for the festival begin in autumn. Villagers cut out large, sturdy branches, which they found among the zelkova trees that grow wild in the mountains.
On the morning of January 14th, they set to stick the branches onto the base of the piled snow. It takes half a day. Agile men climb branches and build the framework of a huge hut. In years when they could not get large branches, the volume of the hut had become smaller.
Then, they hung the rice straw on the framework. If looking up at people working on a thin branch, they are just like Spider-Man. Once the roof top is covered with rice straw to block the snow, they set fire to a hearth. The fire dries the snow-wet branches and straws, and mats lie on the floor. Everything is ready in the late afternoon.
The ceremony starts around 7:00 pm. People joins little by little. In years when a huge hut was built, about 70-80 people were inside at one time. In the hearth, dried squid, which attends to the celebration of the Little New Year, is grilled, and villagers serve pork miso soup, rice cakes, mandarin oranges, sweet mild sake, and rice-producing sake as the local specialties. If you eat dried squid grilled by the fire in the ceremonies of the Little New Year, you will not catch a cold for a year. Snow is under the mat and on the walls, and the outside temperature is below freezing, but the power of the bonfire keeps the warm inside.
The highlight of the banquet, which lasts until nearly 9:00, is Tenjin-Bayashi, sung by the villagers. It is magnificent, and you will go back in time. When the banquet is over, the participants in the hut leave. The villagers set fire to the hut, which took half a day to build. It burst into flames in no time, brightening up the dark village. The year when the flame burns straight is a bountiful harvest.
According to the landscape of snow and the background of the snowy country, fire looks brighter and stronger, giving a sign of spring and hope beyond the deepening snow.
Although it is a heavy snowfall area, there were years when “Baitu” was suspended since the snowfall was too heavy or the snow did not accumulate in the 25 years I visited with the support of Baitu. The COVID-19 pandemic was more severe than that. In the Little New Year of 2023, when the pandemic showed signs of ending, Baitu was not held. Due to the injury of the head of the villager, it became difficult to cut out the zelkova trees. In place of the head, I made arrangements. But the motivation of the eight-family elderly village was declining due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Next year, somehow, I want to support early and restart it.
設営 / Setting-up
See the setting-up of "Baitu" held in 2000. The framework made of zelkova branches has been completed. In 2000, there was little snow.
See the setting-up of "Baitu" held in 2008. They were hanging rice straws on the framework made of zelkova branches.
See the setting-up of "Baitu" held in 2008. They were hanging rice straws on the framework made of zelkova branches.
Look up the state that they were building the framework of zelkova branches in 2001.
See the state that most of framework was covered with rice straws in 2014.
See the state that they were hanging rice straws on the top of the framework in 2014.
See the state that the hut was almost completed in 2014.
See the hut that was just completed at the entrance of Ohshirakura village in 2014.
宴会 / Banquet
The banquet starts inside the hut in 2014.
The participants grill dried squids and rice cakes in the hearth in 2014.
See the highlight of the banquet that villagers sings Tenjin-Bayashi.
奉火 / Fire Ceremony
The hut was set on fire. First, smoke rises.
The hut burst into flames in 2002.
The hut burst into flames in 2008.
祭りの翌朝 / Next morning after the festival
The framework of the hut remained in the snow in the next morning after the festival in 2008.
See the scenery of the framework of the hut and the village in the morning after the festival in 2014.
ご感想はこちらへ / Click here for your impressions
参考文献 / reference
写真の無断使用、転用はご遠慮下さい。/ Please do not use or upload our photos without permission.
