Kemari

Kemari is a traditional Japanese ball game that focuses on cooperation rather than competition.

Unlike most modern sports, players do not try to defeat an opponent. Instead, a group of players works together to keep a single ball in the air for as long as possible. This shared goal requires teamwork and careful coordination among all participants. The game is considered a structured art form that emphasizes skill and grace. It remains a significant cultural practice in Japan today.

The game is played on a flat ground area measuring about 6 to 7 meters squared.

Players must use their bodies to keep the ball aloft without using their arms or hands. They may use their feet, knees, heads, backs, or sometimes their elbows. The person responsible for kicking the ball is known as the mariashi. A skilled mariashi does not just kick the ball hard. Instead, they use a soft touch to serve the ball. This makes it much easier for the next player to control the mari and keep the game going.

The ball used in the game is called a mari.

Creating a mari is a precise and careful process involving several different materials. First, makers use deerskin to construct the ball. They place the hair side of the skin facing inward and the smooth hide on the outside. To achieve the correct shape, the skin is stuffed with barley grains. Once the hide has set into its spherical shape, the grains are removed. Finally, the ball is sewn together using the skin of a horse.

Kemari has a long history that may trace back to a Chinese sport called cuju. Some historians look to the year 644 as a possible starting point. Records from the Nihon Shoki describe a ball game played by Prince Naka-no-Ōe and Fujiwara no Kamatari. However, some scholars dispute this because the game might have used canes like field hockey. The earliest reliable written evidence of the word kemari appears in Heian period records. These records note that games were played as early as May 701.

During the Heian period, kemari became a popular pastime for the nobility.

Famous masters emerged during this time, such as Fujiwara no Narimichi. He was so dedicated to the game that he visited Kumano Hongū Taisha more than 50 times to pray for better skills. He was known for a specific technique called kakari, which involves keeping the ball up using the heel. By the Kamakura period, the game spread to the samurai class. This era saw the creation of new rules and equipment, turning kemari into a formal art form.

As centuries passed, the social groups playing kemari continued to change. During the Muromachi period, the samurai studied kemari alongside waka poetry and the Japanese tea ceremony. While the popularity of sumo caused kemari to decline during the Sengoku period, it saw a revival during the Edo period. During this time, the chōnin, or townspeople class, played the game in the Kansai region. In 1903, an association was established to preserve the tradition. This was supported by an imperial grant because Emperor Meiji wanted to protect traditional Japanese culture from rapid modernization.

Today, kemari is performed as a seasonal event at various Shinto shrines.

You can observe matches at Shimogamo Shrine, Tanzan Shrine, and Shiramine Shrine. At Shiramine Shrine, there is a deity enshrined in an auxiliary shrine who is the kami, or spirit, of the mari. This connection to the ball is respected by many modern athletes, including association football players. The game even gained international attention when former U.S. President George H. W. Bush played it during a visit to Japan. It continues to serve as a living link to Japan's ancient courtly traditions.