Bugaku is also a performance that was introduced from the Asian Continent a little later than Gigaku was introduced. It was very popular in the Imperial Court in the Heian era (the 9-12th century), and transformed into some religious rituals of the common people performed in temples and shrines in the middle ages. One of them is a ritual for rain, in which masks that represent dragons or snakes was used. Masks for Bugaku are colored vividly (very Asian), which are fanciful and imaginary.

No and Kyogen, the most important Japanese classical performances, developed from the performance called “Sarugaku”. Because samurai families patronized them after their styles were established in the Muromachi era (the 15-16th century), we can enjoy them even now. Masks used in No and Kyogen, which have been fostered by the history and the tradition, have extremely beautiful forms and secret ambivalent emotions.