New Year, New Places: Hatsumōde

Waking up in a Kyoto hotel room I was so excited. Today I would visit the Fushimi Inari Shrine and get to experience Hatsumōde, the first shrine visit of the new year. It was January 3rd, so I thought maybe the crowds would have thinned as people had already done their shrine visits. I couldn't have been more wrong.

After getting ready, I went to a restaurant next door called “Eggs and Things”. I love a good breakfast, and this was an area I felt Japanese cuisine was sorely lacking. This Hawaiian restaurant had a wide array of pancakes, omelets, crepes, and most importantly, eggs benedict.

Eggs benny had to be one of my all time favorite breakfast foods, and getting to have it here in Japan felt like a dream come true. The wait may have been a little long, but to me it was worth every second. 

Stopping for coffee along the way, I walked to a nearby train station in the entertainment district to head towards the Fushimi Inari Shrine. There was a train station just a few minutes away from the shrine, which made the trip fairly convenient. After a short train ride I arrived near the shrine. Getting off the train I followed the flow of people, figuring they were probably after the same thing I was.

Quickly, the flow of people turned into a river, then a sea of people, all headed towards the shrine. Things came to a halt as we had to stop by the railway tracks. The anticipation was palpable, everyone wanted to get their turn at the shrine. 

There were people in uniforms doing their best to direct traffic, hollering instructions in Japanese, though probably 25% of the people in the crowd couldn’t understand, myself included. 

After what seemed like ages, finally traffic began to move again. While being in a crowd that large is fun for a bit, I knew it wasn’t sustainable. I hoped as we got closer to the shrine there would be more room for people to disperse so I could breathe again.

Thankfully, I was right. By the time I got to the steps in front of the shrine, people were scattering to different directions. Some stopping for photos, others heading to grab food at the rows of food stalls nearby. 

The shrine was truly beautiful. I hadn’t been to a shrine before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Despite all the people around, it did feel like a mystical experience. I never really felt a sense of sacrality from most churches, but I could definitely feel it here. 

It might be due to how Japanese treat shrines with more respect than people do churches back home. I saw plenty of Japanese people dressed up in beautiful kimonos, both men and women, for their shrine visits. 

There are lots of guidelines for visiting a shrine, so I might not cover them all. First, you bow at the torii gate, asking for permission to enter the shrine. Next you cleanse your hands with water near the entrance, washing away impurities. Then you ring the bell in front of the main hall. 

After ringing the bell you offer a donation, typically a 5 yen coin, before offering a prayer. When praying, you bow twice, clap twice, bring your hands together in prayer, then finish with one more bow. When exiting the shrine, for the final time you face the torii gate and give one final bow.

I’d love to say I nailed all of this, but I missed the initial bow, cleansing my hands, and bowing upon exit. Given the volume of visitors there wasn’t a bell to ring, as it’d probably never stop chiming. I did enjoy making a donation then praying in front of the shrine, wishing for good fortune in the new year and health for my friends and family. 

I also went to receive an Omikuji, literally meaning “sacred lot”, which was my fortune for the year. There are typically fortunes numbered 1 - 32, and in order to know which fortune you should be given, you shake a box filled with long sticks, each inscribed with a number. My number was 3, so after waiting in line, I told the shrine maiden my number and received a fortune. 

Of course, the slip was written all in Japanese, so I had to whip out google translate to see what I got. I had dai-kichi, great blessing! Considering I was in Kyoto experiencing my first shrine visit during a sacred time to many Japanese people, I was feeling rather blessed. 

In the event of bad luck, you typically fold your fortune in 3, and tie it to a pine tree or metal wires in hopes that the fortune will not come to pass.

Since I had a good fortune, I could keep it with me, but I decided to tie it to a wire in hopes of even greater luck. As cool as it was, I doubted I would be referring back to it often, especially if I couldn’t read it. 

The last thing I wanted to do as part of my Hatsumōde was get an Omamori, meaning protection, but often translated as an amulet or good luck charm.

Typically when visiting a shrine for New Year's you get an Omamori and attach it to your bag or cell phone to bring you good fortune or ward off evil spirits. You use the Omamori for that year before returning it to be burned the following Hatsumōde, in order to ward off the previous year's bad luck. 

There are charms of all kinds, ranging from excellence in academics, a healthy pregnancy, traffic safety, and more. I didn’t have any kind of specific protection in mind, so I picked a purple talisman that is currently hanging off my bag. It brings me a small smile everytime I see it.

It was really special for me to be part of these customs, traditions that I’ve often seen portrayed in various anime over the years. I finally was able to take part in it myself. 

With good luck on my side, I continued to explore the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Leaving the main shrine behind I walked alongside other tourists through the multitude of torii gates, around 10,000 total, often forming a tunnel. While recency bias is probably a factor, this was easily one of the coolest sights I’ve ever seen. 

I walked between small shrines, beautiful torii gates, and even smaller shrines near a beautiful forest. I was surprised how much I had been walking, and when I went to look up a map of the shrine, I began to understand why. The Fushimi Inari Shrine sat at the base of Mt Inari, and was about a 2-3 hike to the top of the mountain.

I couldn’t decide if I really wanted to do that long of a hike, especially when I was just starting out on my trip. I had seen signs saying the crossroads area, about 45 minutes up the mountain, had some great views. I decided I would head to the crossroads and see how I felt. 

Turns out I was able to make up my mind before I even got there. No way was I going all the way to the top. The stairs were getting steeper and I was already huffing and puffing. 

The view of the city from this area was well worth the trek though, and I was glad I did it. I stopped for some food on my way down, trying udon for the first time. The noodles were much softer and the broth was way lighter than the heavy ramen I was used to, making it a great lunch meal. 

As I was getting closer to the bottom of the mountain, I was starting to be faced with the question, “now what?”. Should I just go to another shrine? Head back to my hotel? My phone battery was starting to get low, but I wanted to get in a few more sights before I headed back. 

It wasn’t until I was on the train that I actually settled on my next destination. I had initially thought about the Kiyomizu-dera, but that seemed like it would also involve a lot of walking. I settled on seeing the Sanjūsangen-dō, a buddhist temple that had great reviews on google maps and was nice and close to a station. 

I didn’t really know what to expect, since I picked it a little randomly. After buying a ticket for about $6 dollars, I passed through the main entrance. Inside, I saw a very long hall with another entrance type area. There were rows of shoe lockers, but rather than inside shoes or slippers to put on, it seems visitors were just meant to walk in their socks. 

After wrestling off my boots, I began shuffling my way inside, still unsure what to expect. I saw signs saying no photos or phones, as taking photos of the sacred buddha was strictly forbidden. As I turned the corner I was met with a massively long hall filled with 1,001 statues of Thousand-armed Kannon. 

Granted, I had no idea who the statues were of until looking it up later. My experience with Buddhism is really quite limited, but it was still awe inspiring to see rows of statues depicting Kannon and other various deities. Every few feet or so was a statue of a different deity with rows of Kannon statues lined up behind it. 

The wind god, Fūjin, and the thunder god, Raijin were placed first and last respectively, apparently being another big draw of this temple. The only other statue to stand out to me was Asura, though mostly due to it being a name I knew from anime. Of course, the principle image of the temple, a large seated Thousand-armed Kannon surrounded by four attendants left a distinct impression. 

While I’m sure the nuances of this place and its religious importance were lost on me, it certainly felt sacred. People walked slowly, and talked in hushed tones as we appreciated each of the statues. Each statue had a donation box in front of it and people prayed quietly to their preferred deities. 

The last statue, the lighting god Raijin, had specific instructions on how to pray. One was to kneel in front of the statue, knees together, feet flat on the ground, hands together in prayer, and face up towards the statue. Of course, I had to give it a try. Facing up toward the statue it certainly felt divine, even though I lacked any context for who this cool looking guy actually was. 

Growing up with a Christian religious background, I always felt that much of that “holy spirit” derived from community and the importance placed on traditions or ceremony. For myself, I always felt the most connected to a higher power when singing alongside a group of people. Later I would experience a similar feeling at concerts and see that maybe that power was simply in community coming together. 

I no longer attend church, and pray pretty infrequently, but experiencing religion here in Japan I can’t help but feel my spiritual side begin to stir. I’m not sure if I’d like to explore Shintoism and perhaps Buddhism more, or try to reconnect with my christian roots, but it has been a nice feeling. 

Seeing Japanese people pray and take their religions so seriously helps reframe how casual some people can be about invoking christianity. While I can’t say for certain, I doubt there are many buddhists out there praying to win a soccer game, or trying to win a reality tv show on behalf of god. 

Taking a bus back to my hotel, I was just awash with joy at having decided to come to Kyoto. In just one day I was able to see two very incredible things from religions so different from the ones I was used to. It was surprising how different Kyoto felt when compared to Tokyo, even though the two cities were just hours apart by train. 

While my Tokyo trip had been about experiencing the bright lights of the city, Kyoto felt quieter (still crowded though) and more reflective. I was excited to see more of Kyoto, to take in the culture, beautiful sights, and history of the city. I couldn’t wait to see what I might experience at the Kiyomizu-dera tomorrow.