TommyT Report This Comment Date: January 02, 2006 04:00AM
After congratulations I went "Hatsu-moude" to Hakusan Jinja (Hakusan
Shinto shrine), one of famous Shinto shrine in Niigata city. There are terrible
traffic jam ONLY famous Jinja's circumference. People were jamming too...
...But...Bus was quite empty...??? Now Japan is private automobile's
society.
"Hatsu-moude" is one of Japanese new year day's event. Visit a Jinja
and pray new year's happy or lucky or hope etc.
Vistit a Jinja from new year day's eve (Dec. 31) to new year's day (Jan. 1) say
"Ninen-mairi" or "Ninen-moude" (Two years visit).
"Ninen"="Two years", "moude" and "mairi"
= "Visit a Jinja"
[Jinja (Shinto shrine)]
From Wikipedia. ( [
en.wikipedia.org] )
A jinja is a Shinto shrine and its surrounding natural area. In common usage,
jinja often refers to the buildings of a shrine. Unlike a church or a mosque, a
jinja traditionally has neither characteristics of a chapel nor a place for
propagation; its sole purpose is for the enshrinement and worship of a Kami. In
recent centuries, especially significant kami have come to be enshrined
throughout Japan.
It is believed that a jinja had originally been only a temporary shrine
constructed for a periodical matsuri at a sacred place such as a mountain or
cave. This was because it had been believed that kami would move around as much
as any animal, and could not be confined. Okinawa's Utaki retains some of these
beliefs.
However, after a permanent shrine called a Shaden was built, it was reasoned
that a kami would take residence inside a jinja. Some believe that the practice
of constructing shaden is from Buddhism; even today, many jinja from ancient
times do not have shaden, but only a place to pray while looking out to a sacred
place or a specific area which must not be entered.
etc...
About [Japanese Shinto], please read here.
[
en.wikipedia.org]