On December the 14th, I appreciated Nogaku sponsored by Kyoto University （京都大学能楽鑑賞会）in Kyoto Kanze-Kaikan（京都観世会館）. It was for free for people belong to Kyoto University and there were many students coming around. I think this was the good occasion to be exposed to traditional Japanese culture. The performed repertoires were Kyogen Kobuuri（Selling kelp, 昆布売り）and Noh Idzutsu（井筒）. The performance was staged over 30 minutes from the schedule, but it meant the program was successfully performed.
Kobuuri is Kyogen, which is a comedy of a samurai and a kelp seller. Samurai was in higher hierarchy than kelp seller, and was haughty to the kelp seller. The kelp seller tried to give the samurai a scare, and the comedy proceeded.
Idzutsu is Noh of Kadzuramono（鬘物）, and one of the most famous repertoires of Nohs. It is a story about a traveling Buddhist monk encountering a spirit of the woman of Idzutsu, who was a lover of Narihira Ariwara（在原業平）, a famous Japanese poet in ancient days. The theme of love is vividly described in the lines of texts, as in the famous Genji-Monogatari（源氏物語）. The texts described in the pamphlet were different from actual performance, due to many different schools exist. The origin of the texts in the pamphlet was from a different school. You can analyze the difference if you are familiar with Nohgaku. However, excellent sentences were still remained such as “Geni nanigoto mo omoide no hito ni wa nokoru yo no naka kana. Tada itsu to naku hitosuji ni tanomu hotoke no mite no ito, michibiki tamae nori no koe. Mayoi wo mo terasase tamou onchikai…”（げになにごとも思ひ出の 人には残る世の中かな ただいつとなく一筋に 頼む仏の御手の糸 導き給へ法の声 迷いをも 照らさせ給ふおん誓ひ, Indeed, in this world there remains all the trace of the man in my memory. Not at a particular time, I only depend on the string coming down from Buddha. Please lead me, the law of Buddha. Even perplexity the vow casts light to…）. The theme of this repertoire is Pariṇāmanā（回向, transfer of merit）and Saddharma（妙法, the prime intellect of Buddha described in Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra（妙法蓮華経）. You cannot understand the idea without going through the scripture.）. The woman of Idzutsu was acted by Kuroemon Katayama（片山九郎右衛門先生）, who is a man. However, the woman herself is woman and finally she came in a dress of Narihira Ariwara, who is a man. This complexity traces the profound law of Buddhism in the act. That is, immortal nature of love now and forever.
