Ishanagira Youth Association has an outdoor Angama to honor the dead while observing coronavirus precautions in Ishigaki

Ishanagira Youth Association has an outdoor Angama to honor the dead while observing coronavirus precautions in Ishigaki

Ushumai and Nmi performing their dance for angama. September 1, Azaishigaki in Ishigaki


September 2, 2020 Ryukyu Shimpo

Ishigaki – The Ishigaki Ishanagira Youth Association performed the Yaeyama traditional ceremony angama in Fukuyamada, Azaishigaki, which was an evacuation site for Azaishigaki residents during the way, on September 1, the middle of Bon on the lunar calendar. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the event was scaled down and went without the well-known humorous Sumamuni (Yaeyama language) question-and-answer exchange. They honored ancestors who died from malaria during the Pacific War, marking 75 years since the end of the fighting.

In the performance, Ushumai (an old man) and Nmi (an old woman) arrive from Guso (the afterlife) accompanied by three fama (children). Ushumai said a resolution about passing down a peaceful word, saying, “There is malaria in a war-torn world. Now, you face the coronavirus, and I pray that this too can be subdued,” offering incense. Normally for angama¸ the event travels from house to house in the village, delighting the residents they visit. Due to concerns about the coronavirus, the event sought to limit the “Three C’s” (closed spaces with poor ventilation, crowded areas and close-contact settings), and the area largely refrained from participating.
(English translation by T&CT and Sam Grieb)

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