ケララ州北部沿岸、カルナータカ沿岸は古くから自然港に恵まれていた。ヴァスコ・ダ・ガマも、フランシスコ・ザビエルもアラビア海沿岸に到達している。古代から宗教の道であり、インドには生息していなかった馬の道であり、移住してくる人の道でもあった。

　ベンガル湾岸も海は開けている。コルコット(カルカッタ)、チェンナイ(マドラス)は文化都市でもある。

　アラビア海とベンガル湾岸の大きな違いは、受け入れる港と運び出す港の違いであろう。ベンガル湾からスリランカに伝わったマハーバラタ神話は、たちまちインドネシアヘ伝えられた。影絵芝居も、内陸カルナータカで隆盛を誇ったものがオリッサ州、チェンナイを積出港としてジャワに伝わっている。ベンガル湾岸はインド的なるものの吐き出し口なのである。

　アラビア海沿岸は、ペルシャ、アフリカ、そしてヨーロッパからの取り入れ口だった。クリスチャンの多いチェンナイも、もとはといえばアラビア海沿岸に到来したセント・メールが内陸を布教してチェンナイを終点としたのだ。

　吐き出し口と取り入れ口の心性の違いは、到来しものをいかに受容し自らのものにするか。しなければ生存していけない、というところにある。宗教も異人も、どう受け入れ、自分の需要に適合させるか、という志向になる。

　マンガロールには日本人が持っている感性を共有する部分を限りなく発見できる。あるときは異質性を湛えながら、しかし受容の過程を見届けることのできるものごとが多い。死生観、ついでに現世観、共同体、国家観、などである。それは、まさしく海の国、島嶼の発想でもある。言語の複雑さは異質である。しかし言語を越えた思惟は、遥かな大和を共有する。

　現代、パキスタン、アフガニスタンをはさんで、きわめて難しい事態がすぐそこに見えている。この時代に視線をそらすことはできない。

　

　

付録・遠山祭とブータ信仰の文脈

　以下には、2001年10月、マンガロール大学における国際会議の際、発表した論文である。日本と南インドの比較研究という趣旨なので、英文ではあるが、付録として掲載する。

　

　

　

　A person, after his death, goes to the other world. There is another world in the deep forest.

　Sometimes their departed soul visits this world not only at will by him occasionally but also at ritual ceremonies. However no body is able to see, touch, sense it without Shaman.

　People believe that departed soul visits and keeps float on air. It is different level looking like fourth dimension.

　People、family members, relatives, community people, keep memory of the deceased and they have ritual anniversary for him.

　People organize the ritual ceremony at the second, sixth,thirteenth,twentieth,and thirtieth year after the death of a person. After thirty years transforms into one of the deities.

　There is another type of idea in folk,a man takes rebirth seven times in this world. It is not sure whether he takes human form in the near life. Everybody has to receive form of animal, reptile or insect.

　We call this cycle RINNE or RINNE-TENSHOU which is SAMARA in Sanskrit. This idea come from Buddhism and has been received by the folk.

　The person, nobles ,local king, general or politician, when they met their death by violence, people believe that the dead person makes his presence in grudge in order to take revenge against those who were responsible for his death and brings misfortunes to the people.

　People afraid that he would bring plague to the community.

　Then people organize ritual ceremony for the deceased who is called GORYOU and this worship is called GORYOU-SHINKOH.

　This ritual ceremony includes music and dance performances. This is performed to satisfy(comfort) Goryou. Suddenly Goryou appears on the stage of the performance.

　He makes his presence throuqh the human body. People receive him as their deity but not as demon,spirit or ghost. It is really Goryou,and people's idea is that it is the living character of the death person.

　There is nothing audience with in Goryou worship ritual performance.

　People participate in Goryou ritual performance not nearly as audience. But on the other hand, the entire community takes active role in this ritual,hence this is a community-based ritual. Society participate in

this ritual in its entirety. They are positively engaged in self projection and in the second stage they under go a sort of mental tension.

　An intimate relationship is established between Goryou and people in the performance context. Goryou and people move freely from this world to the other world in the ritual performance. They together cross the □g borders with of the two world.

　There is dynamic dramaturgy in this ritual. Specific space is provided for this ritual performance. This theatrical realm causes creation of another world in the performance. It means people really receive Goryou from another world. People who are engaged in this ritual go another and come back here. This place acts as exchanging stage.

　This basic concept of ritualistic theatre is similar to BHUTA-worship of Tuluva-land.

　And it is also base-form for Japanese traditional theatre KABUKI,NOH and others.