ABSTRACT
The principal theme of this group lies in praising the virtue and dignity of a god. In the first scene the god appears in the form of a man (mostly an old man) and converses with an itinerant Sinh) priest, or a despatched official, and narrates to him the history of the foundation of a shrine. This group is called the Second Actor's Noh, because at the beginning of the performance the Second Actor, dressed as a Sint6 priest or an official with his companions, makes
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his ceremonial appearance on the stage. Again, it is called the "God Piece" because in the latter scene the god reveals his true form to the visitors and shows them the God Dance. The chief examples of this gr0up are Takasago (The Pine-tree of Takasago), Yumi-Yawata (The Bow and the God of Yawata), Oz"matu (The Ancient Pine-tree), Kamo (The Thunder-God of Kamo) , Arasi-yama (The God of Mt. Arasi), and Hozyo-gawa (The River H6zy6).
