Experience Japan’s Most Important Cultural Tradition “Hatsumode” (First Shrine Visit of the New Year)! Kawasaki Daishi New Year’s Pilgrimage.

It will be cold, so be sure to dress warmly! It may sound nice to wear a kimono, but there actually aren’t many Japanese people who go through the effort to wear kimono to hatsumode. It is a shrine visit, after all, so flashy and revealing clothes should be avoided too.
Also, you walk a lot at hatsumode, so be sure to wear comfortable shoes.

You should be sure to bring change to make monetary offerings, particularly 5-yen coins (reasoning to follow). Also, there is a good chance you will want to buy small souvenirs like amulets and good luck charms during your visit, and the shrine or temple will likely be running short on 1,000 yen bills, so by paying with one it could help them out. The gods will almost certainly smile upon you for such a considerate thought!

Hatsumode is a crowded event packed with people, so it is a good idea to think about what you want to wish for before your turn is about to come up. People waiting behind you get impatient if you go up to pray and have to stop to think about it (in my experience)....

I love to eat, so it’s no exaggeration to say I consider the most fun part of hatsumode to eat at the various food stalls after worshiping!
It’s also rude to the gods if you go to hatsumode on a full stomach, and there are plenty of delicious stalls to visit afterwards, so be sure to go on an empty stomach!

It will be crowded on the day of the event, so if you go into it looking to have fun, you are much less likely to get irritated waiting in line.
Also, amidst other cultural elements of Japan like tea ceremony, sumo, and kabuki, I believe hatsumode is the easiest and most lighthearted event to experience Japanese culture through, so I’m sure you will enjoy yourself!

I was rather busy at the start of this new year, so I visited a bit late, on January 6th. Most Japanese companies resume operations on the 4th or 5th of the new year, so I was worried that few people would be going when I visited. However, while there certainly were fewer visitors than there are from the 1st through 3rd, there were still plenty of visitors and it was very enjoyable.

If you continue on straight ahead, you will soon reach the main temple building. However, the middle of the path leading there is called “seichuu,” and it is regarded as the path that the gods take. It is ideal to avoid the center of the path as much as possible, so try to walk on either side. It doesn’t matter whether you choose to go on the left or right, but if you decide to walk on the left, walk by stepping with your left foot first. If you decide to walk on the right, do the same with your right foot.

At Kawasaki Daishi, the washbasin is on the right side, so it is efficient to enter from the right.
First off, you need to purify your hands and mouth at the washbasin. Since olden times in Japan, water has been believed to cleanse impurities. People who wish to visit the gods must first cleanse their bodily impurities using the washbasin’s water. Here is how to properly do this.

In most shrines and temples, areas called “Nousatsu Den” or “Nousatsu-jou” are usually located near the washbasin.
This is where “osame” takes place, an act where you return items like charms that you received past times you came to worship. The effective period of charms is typically one year. Here you can give thanks for past protections and properly dispose of the charms.

Now it’s finally time to go worship, but on the way to the main temple hall there is a large “kenkou,” or incense offering area. It is a place to cleanse yourself with the smoke of incense.

You rub incense smoke into sick or hurt parts of your body to pray for faster recovery. It is said that putting a child’s head into the smoke and rubbing it in makes them grow up smarter.

You do not have to buy incense, but it may be a fun thing to indulge in if it is your first time. A bundle costs 100 yen, and after purchasing you can light the incense using the flames and then put it in the censer. The censer will be very hot, so please be careful to not burn yourself.

After going up the stone steps and inside the main temple hall, there is a large offerings box ahead. Keep in mind that it is impolite to approach via the middle of the path. If even the middle area is occupied, don’t wait for the people in front of you to finish their prayers; you can go ahead and do that year’s worship from the back. The proper steps are outlined below.

走進大堂，高大的佛像前設有一個又寬又長的“賽銭箱”。往正中央擠過去會很失禮，如果中央沒有空位就在側近參拜即可。在寺院和在神社參拜時的參拜方法有很大的不同，下面是各自具體的參拜方法。

Keeping your coat or hat on while worshipping is rude to the gods, so remove them beforehand to be polite. However, if the area is densely crowded, it is okay to leave your coat on. Always be sure to remove your hat!

Foreign visitors are likely wondering how much they should offer when they visit. The answer to that is, “It is about how you feel, the amount does not matter.” Originally, monetary offerings did not carry the meaning of “God, I’m giving you money, so please grant my wish,” but rather “God, please listen to my wish, thank you.” So, it is an act meant to express your gratitude, and as such the amount of money does not matter.

However, there are numbers you can reference for how much you actually should offer. These amounts are based off of monetary amounts that Japanese people consider to be auspicious or lucky. I am sure that some readers will want to avoid giving amounts that the Japanese people consider unlucky as well, so these will be summarized below.

In Japan, bells are believed to ward off evil spirits, so by ringing one you are able to cleanse impurities. A common misunderstanding is people believing that “if you ring the bell, it can call gods.” Also, as for how to ring the bell, you just ring it once quietly.

As I mentioned above, the way to pray at temples and shrines is slightly different. At temples, you typically use the “bow once, clasp hands in prayer, bow once” method, while at shrines you usually use the “bow twice, clap twice, bow once” method. Particularly the shrines’ method is said to be a unique act to Japan, so check out these following videos!

Even many Japanese people forget this, but you are supposed to bow to the temple or shrine as you leave. When visiting most temples and shrines, you end up leaving the same way you came in. So, when you pass back through the torii or temple gate, you turn around, bow once, and then go on your way.

I started off with chicken skewers (200 yen each) and hotdogs (200 yen each)! Be sure to add togarashi (chili pepper) if you love spicy food!

I made it too spicy, so I had to have some amazake (200 yen per cup). (´ω｀)

You also have to get some offal stew (400 yen)! Especially the radish in it; it soaks up all the flavor and is incredibly delicious!

Grilled squid (600 yen) is also really fragrant and delicious! On top of all that, I also tried some Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (600 yen) and turban shell skewers (300 yen).
Buttered potatoes (500 yen) are also an indispensable part of stall food! They’re available with salt, mayonnaise, and soy sauce miso flavors, but I recommend the salt ones the most! Put plenty of margarine on top of the hot potato you receive! (Self-serve)

After that, I bought a bottle of tea, and between me and my friend we ended up spending 3000 yen overall! Before I knew it I was stuffed! I visited delicious stall after delicious stall, all while passing by lots of people! Eating and walking around is the best after all!

To foreigners visiting Japan, anything you can get at these stalls is sure to be new and strange, but there are things that Japanese people can only get at stalls like this too! If you’re not sure what to try, here is a list of a few stalls that even Japanese people are sure to stop at!