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Namahage Museum: The Legend of the Mountain Gods

The people of Oga have long worshiped Mt. Shinzan and Mt. Honzan as holy places where the protector deities of the villages reside. The Namahage are considered incarnations of these gods, and the fact that they “come down from the mountains” at the end of every year seems to further underline their connection with the divine peaks. In several settlements around Oga, including Shinzan, the masks worn by the Namahage are red, indicating the wearers’ status as embodiments of the “red gods.” Here, the color red refers to the mountains. It also appears in the names of places such as Oga’s Akagami Shrine, where akagami means “red gods.”

なまはげ館：解説 山の神説

男鹿の人々は長きにわたって、真山と本山を聖なる地として崇拝し、そこには村の守護神が住まうと考えてきました。なまはげはこれらの神々の使いとされており、なまはげが毎年年末に「山から降りてくる」という設定も、なまはげとこれらの神聖な山々のつながりをさらに強調するものです。真山を含む男鹿周辺のいくつかの村では、なまはげが被る仮面は赤く、これはなまはげが「赤神」の使いであることを示すものです。ここでは赤い色は山を指すものです。また赤は男鹿の赤神神社などの地名にも見られます。赤神とは「赤い神」を意味します。