Line 8:
Line 8:
The most sacred ''utaki'' on the [[Okinawa Island|island of Okinawa]] is an ancient site known as [[Sefa-utaki]]. Other famous sites include [[Sonohyan utaki]] and Suimui utaki on the grounds of [[Shuri castle]].
The most sacred ''utaki'' on the [[Okinawa Island|island of Okinawa]] is an ancient site known as [[Sefa-utaki]]. Other famous sites include [[Sonohyan utaki]] and Suimui utaki on the grounds of [[Shuri castle]].
+
+
Most ''utaki'' are dedicated to the worship of deities or spirits of protection for the village, or to the deities coming from ''[[nirai kanai]]'', the spiritual source or land of the gods far across the sea. ''Utaki'' in the royal capital of [[Shuri]] are also dedicated to the protection of the king, or of the [[Ryukyu Kingdom|kingdom]].<ref>"Shuri ma~i" 首里ま~い. Pamphlet. Naha City Board of Education Cultural Properties Division 那覇市教育委員会文化財課, 1989.</ref>
{{stub}}
{{stub}}
Line 13:
Line 15:
==References==
==References==
*[[Robin Thompson|Thompson, Robin]]. "The Music of Ryukyu." ''Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. pp305-306.
*[[Robin Thompson|Thompson, Robin]]. "The Music of Ryukyu." ''Ashgate Research Companion to Japanese Music''. Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, 2008. pp305-306.
+
<references/>
[[Category:Ryukyu]]
[[Category:Ryukyu]]
[[Category:Shrines]]
[[Category:Shrines]]