Vessel (FF4)

Vessel Game Fatal Frame IV Kanji/Kana 器　（うつわ） Alias(es) Dancer Range of Age Varies Occupation Dancer/varies Purpose To perform and dance for the Kagura Ritual Rituals Rogetsu Kagura and Rite of Descent Location Rogetsu Isle Total Member One per ritual (two named)

The Vessel (or Utsuwa in fan translations) was the central figure in the Rite of Descent ritual of Rogetsu Isle, and later the Rogetsu Kagura, a simplified version of the Rite of Descent performed for tourists. Wearing a mask and accompanied by five young Organs, the Vessel would dance throughout the lunar eclipse.

Selection

The selection process for a Vessel in the Rite of Descent is obscure. In the case of the Kagura, the islanders would recommend a suitable woman to the head of the Haibara Family on the basis of age and temperament.

Preparation

For both rituals, Vessel and Kanade had to undergo purification beneath the mask in the Antechamber. There they would listen to the Moonsounds from the altar and become one with the mask, before proceeding directly to the ritual dais.

In the past, the Vessel was also required to participate in rituals in the Primeval Passage to ensure her suitability as a medium, consorting with spirits and becoming accustomed to the "utsusemi" (empty body) state.

Rituals

In the Rite of Descent, the role of the Vessel was to channel the spirits of the dead through a gate to the other world, which would open on the surface of the sea if the ritual was performed successfully. The dancer in the rite wore a red kimono with cloud patterns. Her mask was the Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, crafted using harvested facial skin of a person who had Budded, and purified in the moonlight in the Shugen Temple.

The Kagura did not open the gate, but the Vessel acted as the source of the trance-like state of emptiness, which would spread to the crowd and end at the culmination of the ritual and moment of eclipse. Her mask and kimono were white.

Known Vessels

• Byakuya - the first Vessel, who started the tradition of training in the Primeval Passage
• Tsubaki Tono - performed in the Kagura in 1979
• Sakuya Haibara - performed once in the 1969 Kagura, and again in the Rite of Descent in 1979

Misc. Info

• The character 器 (utsuwa) has a range of meanings, including "vessel" and "instrument", which convey the Vessel's role in receiving and channelling the spirits of the dead.
• The same word is also used to refer to the shrine maiden in the Tokoyomi Ritual from Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir, who becomes a vessel for a god to reside in.