Torinoichi - Praying for prosperity

Today Daianji Temple in downtown had Torinoichi. It is an annual festival held in shrines and temples on the days of Tori (rooster) in November according to the Chinese calendar. Then visitors pray for prosperity in their business. As my grandmother was a shopkeeper, she often went to this festival. It has a long tradition from the Edo period. It was originally a harvest festival in the Kanto area where Tokyo is situated.

There were stalls selling bamboo rakes. They were decorated with various lucky charms such as oval gold coins of former days, rice bags, sea breams, turtles, plum blossoms, bamboo, and pine. Good fortune is supposed to be raked in with these.

Every year, people buy a new rake that is bigger than the old one so that they should have bigger fortune. The old rake from the previous year is returned to the temple or shine or stall where it was bought so that it should be disposed of carefully.

 
The rakes were quite expensive, so I just went into the building of the temple. There I threw a coin into the offertory box, swung the rope to ring the bell hung above, and prayed. Near the offertory box, I found small simple rakes with rice stalks. I liked them much more than the gorgeous ones sold outside. There were also wooden little daruma dolls modeled after the founder of Zen Buddhism.

Before leaving the temple, I drew a fortune slip. It showed “good fortune” and said that my wish would come true though it would take time. What a relief!