Kumamatsuri: The Bear Festival in Japan
Each year in the northern part of Japan on the island of Hokkaido where the Ainu people live, a ceremony takes place in early December called the Bear Festival. In Japanese, the holiday is called Kumamatsuri. The Ainu have lived in Japan for many centuries and have a culture all their own, from religion to daily lifestyle. The Ainu regard many animals as being sacred but for them, the bear is the chief of all animals. They also believe that their deities can incarnate into bears and roam the earth to keep an eye on their followers. The Ainu also believe that the bear is a sustainer of life, a useful animal that provides nourishment, warmth, and weapons. Like other cultures who view life as sacred but recognize the need for animals, the Ainu used the entire animal once hunted; they did not let any part of the creature go to waste.
During the Bear Festival, two different events took place: the Omante, or ritual where an adult bear is caught, or the Iomante. The Iomante ritual began with the capture of a young bear, which is then brought into the village and treated like a senior family member: it is fed cooked human food if old enough to chew; if just a baby, a nursing Ainu woman might suckle the baby bear at her breast. When the cub got older, it is sacrificed to the gods and the soul is released, sending it on its way to heaven, where the bear god originally lives. Men use special arrows intended just for this purpose, which are not your ordinary hunting arrows. Then the people of the village made offerings, while the men prayed to the bear deities, while the women clapped and sang. Both men and women danced during the ceremony. When the Omante was performed, the adult bear was sacrificed, roasted and eaten with a special dignity that will send the soul of the animal to heaven. Back home, the bear gods heard the prayers of the Ainu and granted them the good wishes requested to last for the upcoming New Year. The furs from the bears helped keep the people warm in this cold part of Japan. Claws and teeth were used in ornaments worn by the Ainu.
While the ceremony of the Bear Festival is not as frequently performed today, it gives us an idea of the Ainu religious practices and how they viewed the bear as a scared animal. As with some Native American tribes, the Bear Mother concept was not confined to the Northern American continent. The festival does provide us with an interesting piece of Japan’s past history, especially for those who have an interest in the practice of animal worship.
Image Credit: Smartneddy, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
