The Children’s Kagura is a traditional dance from  Nima, in Ota, Shimane Prefecture that dates back to the Edo period.

Nima is a community dependent partly on  agriculture and partly on fishing, and faces the Japan Sea. Only about 280 families live here.

It is said that, beginning in 1751, the Omoto Kagura dance became a children’s dance.

From January 1st to 3rd each year, children perform the Kagura dance at  night. Elementary and junior high-school students from Takuno enact the story of Susanoo-no-mikoto’s dragon hunting and his encounter with Princess Inada Before the adults, the children play the roles of dragons, immortals, demons and foxes.

In  1964 (Showa 39), the Children’s Kagura was designated an intangible cultural asset of Nima. In 1969 (Showa 44), this Kagura was peformed before the crown prince and  princess (the present emperor and empress) of Japan.

Children’s Kagura was performed in the United States as a part of a cultural exchange program.

The Kagura dance by the children of Takuno has been passed down for many generations and will continue to do so.