September 1st, 2015

It's been an interesting day, and I have some news, but I'm probably going to wait to share that on here until I've got all the details hashed out. I did think that I would share a picture with you all, though.

This is where I ended up putting my dragon statue I bought Saturday, on a shelf over my desk. I've attached some warding to the statue, and put an offering of water in the glass dish. He wanted some crystals set around him, so I put a Black Onyx and two Tektites on the shelf as well.

On either side of the statue, I have two Japanese amulets for academic success; to the left is my green Maneki Neko, and to the right is a little mini shrine-shaped amulet I bought at Meiji Jinja in Tokyo.

I also have two little shells sitting there, although they're hard to see in the photo. One shell is holding water, and the other is holding salt. I don't have a Kamidana at this point in time, although I would like to acquire one. In the meantime, I am using the shells to hold offerings to the Kami.

August 31st, 2015

I've been doing some more research into Japanese Shintoism, and was specifically looking at information on the Kamidana, or "God shelf". These are small personal shrines for one's home or place of business which are made by traditional craftspeople and blessed by the Shinto priests. A lot more goes into one than I was aware, so I thought I would share the information I found as a bit of an intro.

All Kamidana look a little different, but here is one style for reference.

In the back is the Kamidana itself, designed in the style of a Shinto shrine but in miniature. Depending on the model, the doors usually open and the whole front may be removable. This is necessary so that the Ofuda can be placed inside. The Ofuda is a blessed and consecrated piece of calligraphy which is what enshrines the deity, or (O)Kami-san, in the Kamidana. The Ofuda must be replaced every year to keep the blessing fresh and current.

Another thing to note is that the Kamidana should be placed on the north or west wall so that the doors face south or east. Additionally, it should be set above eye level (generally 6' or higher off the floor), and one should avoid walking under it. If the building has other floors above where the Kamidana is placed, one should put a paper with the Japanese word "Kumo" (雲), meaning "cloud", above it to ritually designate that as sky. This keeps people on the upper floors from walking through Kami-sama's space.

Directly in front of the Kamidana doors is the shinkyo, a special stand set with a kagami, or sacred mirror. The mirror is considered one of the sacred treasures of Japan, as seen in the story of the sun goddess Amaterasu and the cave.

Set around the Kamidana in the image above is a shinki set. Often, the set is seen on an ozen stand in front of the mirror. The shinki set includes porcelain dishes to hold rice and salt, a lidded bowl to hold water, and two taller vases to hold sake (rice wine) or mirin (rice wine vinegar). Any and all of these are given as offerings, although the latter two are often reserved for festivals or other special occasions.

A shinki set may also come with two more vases to hold sakaki tree leaves. The leaves can be procured fresh, although practitioners frequently use artificial leaves, as the fresh variety can be hard to find on a regular basis.

And finally, a shimenawa, or rope made of rice straw, is hung over the Kamidana to mark it as a sacred place. The white origami shide hanging from it represent lightning, and therefore also the power of nature.

There are other accessories, amulets, and etc. one can purchase when practicing Shinto, like the omamori I brought back from Japan last summer, but to my present understanding, these are the basics of setting up the God shelf Kamidana.

July 16th, 2014

I decided I'd round out my Japan posts with photos of all the lucky charms (omamori) I bought from different shrines and temples. For the sake of scale, all of these are between one and three inches long.

From Itsukushima:

A general "good fortune" talisman, embroidered with the island deer.

A talisman for good luck in academics, taking exams, etc.

From Kinkakuji:

A "traffic safety" amulet, which I'm assuming extends likewise to safety during travel.

From Kiyomizudera:

A squishy little talisman portraying the god of business success.

A dragon talisman for good fortune.

From Jishu:

A talisman for improving "the luck in love of one's zodiac sign". I'm a Pisces.

From Meiji:

I was so worried that I'd lost this one because I couldn't find it the other day, but when I got my keychain holding all of these out to take pictures, there it was! This amulet promotes oneness of the mind and body.

The writing on this carved wood reads "kodama", which is the Japanese word for "tree spirit" (similar to the European dryad). These spirits of the forest are generally benign, unless their tree is attacked, in which case they may curse the person who cut it. According to the Meiji shrine website, these wooden bells are made from the wood of sacred trees which have finished guarding the shrine precinct and allow for the oneness of human spirit and nature.

And then there's this: my little desktop shrine for academic excellence.

All of these are definitely coming to college with me.

Meiji Shrine

Of all the historical sites we visited in Japan, the Meiji Shrine was by far the newest, having been founded in 1912 to honor the Meiji Emperor's role in the Meiji Restoration. Construction began in 1915, and was completed in 1921. The original building was destroyed in WWII, but has since been rebuilt.

All of these are empty sake (rice wine) barrels donated to the shrine annually as an offering. The writing gives the brand name; many companies have been donating barrels every year since the establishment of the shrine.

The Torii gate is enormous. The three gold medallions are the Imperial Seal - sixteen petalled chrysanthemums, a repeating motif throughout the shrine grounds. 

This is the interior of the shrine.

These boards, called "ema", are available for purchase by patrons for the equivalent of $5 (500 yen); one writes a personal prayer or petition on it, and the following morning the shrine priests bless them and hang them on the displays around the tree. That rope around the trunk? It's a special Shinto decoration demarcating sacred space.

I was not exactly clear on whether the bonsai tree display was a year-round thing or if it was a temporary exhibit, but while I was there, the shrine was exhibiting lots of donated bonsais. This particular specimen was 300 years old.
Not exactly pictured is the forest surrounding the shrine, with hundreds of thousands of trees, all of which were donated and planted when the shrine was first established. It's an absolute delight to walk through. Not only is it stunningly beautiful, but you get a real sense of both history and magick, like the trees know something you don't and are whispering about it to each other. That's what I thought, anyway.
The Meiji Shrine had some of the coolest amulets, in my opinion, so I got a couple of them. One was a mini wooden shrine for improving academic excellent, another was a wooden sphere for the union of spirit and nature, and the third was a silver charm for the union of body and soul. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find the latter; it's possible that it got mixed up in the packaging when I was taking my things out of my suitcase, which is somewhat upsetting. Still, I figure that if it's meant to come back to me, I'll find it sooner or later.

Kiyomizudera

And you thought I was done talking about my Japan trip! ;) Not even close. It does give me a lot of blog fodder, though, so I may stretch it out just a bit.

Otowa-San Kiyomizudera

Literally "Clear Water of Mt. Otowa Temple", Kiyomizudera is another famous Buddhist temple in Kyoto. Founded in 778, before Kyoto was made Japan's capital, the temple buildings have been burned down numerous times. Most of the present buildings were rebuilt by the Shogun Tokugawa in the 1630s. In 1994, it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list as a historic monument of ancient Kyoto. 

Kiyomizu Temple is a stunning example of Japanese architecture and worship, but regrettably, I only have a few pictures since many of the buildings prohibit photography. 

This is the Deva Gate and primary entrance into the temple grounds. Devas (Ten in Japanese) are Buddhist entities who live on higher planes. They are invisible to the human eye, but those with special extrasensory capabilities may possess the power to hear their voices or see them psychically, or the spirits may take on an illusory form to manifest themselves on the human plane. Their powers include flying and moving from place to place with great speed; the more powerful varieties neither eat nor drink. Under the umbrella term "Deva", there are many varieties of spirit, each having their own abilities and place in the universe. They are arranged hierarchically and in this way could be considered comparable to angelic choirs in Christianity, but a Buddhist would likely caution one to not assume that Devas are equivalent to angels; indeed, some important distinctions exist that one should be aware of. For starters, Devas are not paragons of morality. They certainly can be, and many are, but it is not a requirement. Some possess human vices like arrogance or pride, and likewise they are not omnipotent. Furthermore, Devas are not immortal (though their life span may be billions of years), and they reincarnate just as all other mortal beings do in Buddhist belief. A Deva may come back as a human, another Deva, or something else altogether. It is not easy to work with this brand of spirit, as getting their attention is a challenge, but if they can be contacted they tend to give valuable advice and insight.

Remember the Komainu from Itsukushima? Here's another one, right outside the Deva Gate.

This one is not my picture. It shows the main hall of the temple and the terrace which provides a stunning overlook of the valley and of Kyoto beyond. In this hall is enshrined Kannon Bosatsu (remember her from Kinkakuji?) and I got to see a group of monks performing mass here as well as individuals making offerings and prayers.

This (also not my picture) is the goddess Kannon shown in her form of having 11 heads and 1,000 arms. According to legend, she saw all the misery and suffering in the world but could not answer all the prayers of her supplicants, so her head split into 11 pieces and now she has 11 mouths with which to answer. Likewise, her hands could not offer help to all of humanity, so her arms split apart and now she has 1,000 of them to aid her in her task. The Kiyomizudera statue is hidden most of the time; according to my research, it is only viewable once every 33 years.

The name, Clear Water Temple, comes from the fresh mountain springs which have been flowing since the temple was founded. There are three springs, and patrons wait in a long line to hold a bamboo ladle under the water and drink. Each spring has a different association - longevity, wisdom, and love - but it is generally considered bad form to drink from all three.
I did buy lucky amulets here, of course. One is a small figure of the "god of Business Success", and the other has a dragon printed on the fabric for good fortune.

July 3rd, 2014

Kinkakuji Temple

Kinkakuji is a Zen Buddhist temple located in Kyoto, Japan, and was founded in 1397. The original building was burned down during the Onin war; in 1950, it was burned down again by a monk later diagnosed with schizophrenia and a persecution complex. The present structure was rebuilt in 1955, and is one of the most famous temples in the island nation, attracting huge numbers of tourists annually. The name "Kinkakuji", translated as "Golden Pavilion", comes from the exterior of the temple itself, which is coated in a layer of gold leaf. The gold is used as a purifier of the worshippers, mitigating pollution in the soul and negating unhealthy attitudes towards death. Beyond the beauty of the building itself, the temple is noted for its extensive gardens, which are considered an excellent example of the Muromachi design style.

The Pavilion is sacred for a number of reasons. For one, it functions as a "shariden", holding the Buddha's ashes. It also houses a hall of worship for Kannon Bosatsu, the Japanese goddess of mercy. Known in other Buddhist sects as Avalokiteśvara, or "The God Who Looks Down", Kannon is a Bodhisattva embodying the compassion in all manifestations of Buddha. According to Mahayana doctrine, this Bodhisattva has sworn to refuse its own Buddhahood until all sentient beings have achieved Nirvana. 

Wikipedia (because nothing on that website is ever wrong //sarcasm font//) lists the Japanese mantra to Kannon as "おん あるりきゃ そわか" or "On Arurikya Sowaka".

The temple. The building is not actually open to visitors so far as I could tell (I think it's open only to monks), but there's a boardwalk all around the lake, and plenty of opportunities to make donations and pray outdoors. 

The phoenix roof ornament with a crow sitting on top. Japanese phoenixes have the same essential meaning of life and rebirth that they do in other parts of the world.

Me with the temple - proof that these aren't just photos from Google Images.

At all the shrines and temples we went to, the expectation was that one would donate some small amount of money (usually the equivalent of a dollar or less) before praying. Here, the most powerful prayers are those where the visitor's coin lands in the little metal bowl. As my history teacher put it: "Buddhists were the original capitalists".

At this temple, I bought a safe travel amulet, as well as a wooden bracelet for my uncle (it seemed like the sort of thing he would wear) that is supposed to convey good health.

June 23rd, 2014

I do want to write up posts about my time in Japan, but first, a bit of news from today. My family and I are spending the weekend at my chosen university for next fall, going through the whole freshmen orientation business. The campus is set in a beautiful landscape, mere minutes from a wildlife refuge, national forest, and a park that's actually called Garden of the Gods. Not only that, but five minutes from my dorm is a Gaia Interfaith center, and there's a forest preserve in the middle of campus. It couldn't be a more ideal setting for a Pagan (well, other than no candles or incense in the dorm room). Moreover, there's a ton of diversity in the student body, so I can't imagine I'll be the only Pagan in the area. Like the icing on the cake, we were taking a bus tour this afternoon when we passed the campus forest preserve and saw a doe standing along the edge of the trees. She looked right at me, and I knew that could only be a sign of Goddess-given approval. I can't wait to start here in the fall!

Okay, back to Japan. The first shrine we visited was Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima Island, across the bay from Hiroshima. 

Itsukushima Shrine

Itsukushima is one of the most famous shrines in Japan, and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Because it is a Japanese shrine, it is Shinto. Japanese temples are Buddhist. That being said, Shintoism and Zen Buddhism coexist peacefully on this island nation, and indeed, over 70% of the population considers itself both Buddhist and Shinto. Many famous places are actually home to both temples and shrines in the same acre of space. As a general rule of thumb, Shinto rites relate to one's daily life, while Buddhist rites deal with death and remembrance of the deceased. In Shintoism, the color white is considered sacred. Many paper temple decorations are white, as are the robes worn by the priests.

The shrine celebrates the god of the island itself, specifically the god (kami) of Mt. Misen, the island's tallest mountain. That being said, there are websites which say that this shrine venerates Susanoo, the moon and storm god, his daughters, or various local goddesses. I am basing my information off what was listed on the UNESCO website, given that that seemed like the most reliable source of information.

Itsukushima was supposedly founded in 593, but no written record of it exists prior to 811. The original buildings were reconstructed and expanded in the 1100s (1168, according to written record), after which the shrine received the patronage of Taira no Kiyomori, the most powerful shogun of the era. He believed he owed his political power to the god of Itsukushima, and worshiped there often. As a result, some Japanese may consider the place a shrine to Kiyomori as well.

Fire severely damaged the premises in 1207, but reconstruction efforts kept the blueprints very similar to what had been there in Kiyomori's time. Since then, the shrine has never been reconstructed all at once, but individual buildings have required work as storms, typhoons, and tsunamis have done damage. They have been meticulously repaired in accordance with historical materials and practices. The Japanese government now personally oversees work done on this historical religious site. A relatively recent addition? Fire extinguishers, since Itsukushima is built entirely of wood and plaster.

But enough history. It's the pictures that you actually want to see.

Here's your first view of Itsukushima as you approach Miyajima by ferry. That vermillion Torii gate is not the shrine itself, but it is the gate of purification that designates the presence of all Shinto shrines. This one is particularly impressive - for one thing, it's huge. For another, it's set well out on the beach such that it appears to float on the water at high tide. In ancient times, pilgrims could not enter the island until they had passed under the Torii by canoe and ritually cleansed themselves.

Also on the island, besides the shrine, are dozens of these cute little deer (Yes, that's me next to him. Pictures or it didn't happen, right?). They're considered a Japanese national treasure, and are denizens of the shrine in their own right. Being completely used to human presence, one can walk right up to them, and they'll just keep on minding their own business. You aren't actually supposed to pet them (a rule that doesn't seem especially well-followed), but if you have so much as the slip of a paper receipt showing, they will try to eat it. Go figure.

This is a Komainu, a "lion dog" spirit always displayed in pairs and usually at the entry gates to Shinto shrines. Originating in China, Komainu spirits and their statues are found today in Korea and Japan as well. Lions are mystically believed to frighten away evil in the East, and so they sit and guard these sacred spaces. In many pairs, the animals are identical but for one thing: their mouths. Often, one will have its mouth open and the other's will be closed. The open-mouthed spirit is saying "A", the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, while the closed-mouth spirit says "Um", the last letter. Together, they say "Aum", representative of the beginning and end of all things (think Alpha and Omega); the word has significance in Buddhisn, Hinduism, and Jainism, but is relevant to cultures the world over.

This is a much closer view of the Torii gate; note how small the people are by comparison. Leave a coin at its base and make a wish.

These are the handwashing stations which can be found outside all shrines and some temples. The proper way to use them is as follows: holding the dipper in your left hand, scoop a cup of water and pour it over your right. Switch the dipper to your right hand, and pour water over your left. Then cup your left hand and pour water into it. Sip this water and use it to rinse your mouth; then spit it out onto the bamboo or rocks outside the water enclosure. Finally, allow the remaining water to run down the handle of the dipper to clean it for the next person. This represents purification of the body, while passing through the Torii gate is purification of the soul.

And finally, the shrine itself. Inside, one can walk the corridors in quiet contemplation, pray as desired, marvel at the tiny crabs inhabiting the sandy courtyard at low tide, and if you happen to make it at just the right time, watch a Shinto priest perform a ceremony. Available for purchase are paper fortunes (better than fortune cookies) in a variety of languages - English, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean are the usual ones - or Omamori, which are lucky amulets. These come in a wide variety of colors and meanings, and each can only be bought at that specific temple or shrine. They are often monogrammed, at the very least, with the name of where they were bought and with their purpose. From Itsukushima, I got a purple amulet (or in this case talisman might be more accurate) to enhance studying and a pastel one embroidered with island deer for general good fortune.

That's Miyajima! If you ever have the opportunity to go, I highly recommend it. It is absolutely stunning, not to mention of vast historical, cultural, and religious significance. I can also tell you that the maple leaf is an iconic symbol in the Miyajima area, and that you can not only see many wild Japanese maples (Momiji) but you can also get lots of maple leaf themed snacks and souviners. Yes, I shopped more in two weeks than I've done in my entire eighteen years. No, I do not have a single regret.