Hatsumode - Happy New Year
Happy New Year to all readers and wishes for a happy and prosperous 2010. The New Year Lottery numbers have been announced, and New Year cards have been exchanged. People are waking up all over the country and enjoying a walk in the snow for a first visit to the shrine. While at the shrine people pray for prosperity, they purchase good luck charms, and write their hopes and dreams on wooden plaques to hang for the year.
Here are just a few awesome shrines about the place for you to see in the New Year:
Atsuta Shrine
Atsutajingu-Kyu-Cho (Shrine Office)
1-1-1 Jingu, Atsuta-ku, Nagoya, Japan 456-8585
TEL: 052-671-4151
Atsuta Jingu was originally founded about 1900 years ago, when the sacred sword Kusanagi-no-tsurugi, one of the Imperial symbols, was enshrined. The shrine has a peaceful feel (although not in the New Year period when people line the paths to pray) and boasts many old and beautiful sacred trees. Going there by train is preferable to car as there is not much parking. The shrine is accessable via Jingu Nishi Station on the Meijo (purple) subway line, or Jingu-Mae on the Meitetsu line.
Here is a blogger account of New Year Shrine procedings at Atsuta Shrine.
Tado Shrine
1681 Tado Tado-cho Kuwana-shi Mie-ken 511-0106
TEL：0594-48-2037 FAX：0594-48-5381
A shrine in the countryside of Kuwana, the symbol of this shrine is the horse, reflected in the festival that happens later in the year. However, even though it's not especially famous for New Year, it is still a popular destination that wouldn't be overly crowded if you wanted to avoid the throng. Be prepared to climb stairs, though, as there are many. Travelling there by car is preferable, although the nearest train station would be Kuwana on the JR or Kintetsu Line. This shrine is located between Nagoya and Ise - not that I'm suggesting that you try going to all three shrines listed here in one day.
Ise Shrine
1 Ujitachi-cho, Ise, Mie 516-0023, Japan
Tel: 0596-24-1111
One of the most important shrines and cultural assets of Japan, Ise Shrine simply known as "Jingu" has a history of about 2000 years. Established to worship the goddess Amaterasu-omikami, whose tears are said to have made up the many islands of Japan. The inner sanctum (Naiku) is purportedly the home of the sacred mirror, meaning that two of the three sacred artefacts (the mirror at Ise and the sword at Atsuta) are close to home to those in Nagoya. You can't see the sacred artefact itself, but you can feel the spirituality of the shrine in the holy forest, which was traditionally harvested for the cypress used to fortify the shrine in ceremonies.
Here are just a few awesome shrines about the place for you to see in the New Year:
Atsuta Shrine
Atsutajingu-Kyu-Cho (Shrine Office)
1-1-1 Jingu, Atsuta-ku, Nagoya, Japan 456-8585
TEL: 052-671-4151
Atsuta Jingu was originally founded about 1900 years ago, when the sacred sword Kusanagi-no-tsurugi, one of the Imperial symbols, was enshrined. The shrine has a peaceful feel (although not in the New Year period when people line the paths to pray) and boasts many old and beautiful sacred trees. Going there by train is preferable to car as there is not much parking. The shrine is accessable via Jingu Nishi Station on the Meijo (purple) subway line, or Jingu-Mae on the Meitetsu line.
Here is a blogger account of New Year Shrine procedings at Atsuta Shrine.
Tado Shrine
1681 Tado Tado-cho Kuwana-shi Mie-ken 511-0106
TEL：0594-48-2037 FAX：0594-48-5381
A shrine in the countryside of Kuwana, the symbol of this shrine is the horse, reflected in the festival that happens later in the year. However, even though it's not especially famous for New Year, it is still a popular destination that wouldn't be overly crowded if you wanted to avoid the throng. Be prepared to climb stairs, though, as there are many. Travelling there by car is preferable, although the nearest train station would be Kuwana on the JR or Kintetsu Line. This shrine is located between Nagoya and Ise - not that I'm suggesting that you try going to all three shrines listed here in one day.
Ise Shrine
1 Ujitachi-cho, Ise, Mie 516-0023, Japan
Tel: 0596-24-1111
One of the most important shrines and cultural assets of Japan, Ise Shrine simply known as "Jingu" has a history of about 2000 years. Established to worship the goddess Amaterasu-omikami, whose tears are said to have made up the many islands of Japan. The inner sanctum (Naiku) is purportedly the home of the sacred mirror, meaning that two of the three sacred artefacts (the mirror at Ise and the sword at Atsuta) are close to home to those in Nagoya. You can't see the sacred artefact itself, but you can feel the spirituality of the shrine in the holy forest, which was traditionally harvested for the cypress used to fortify the shrine in ceremonies.
