photos prose & poetry
Category: Japanese Culture
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Kawasaki Daishi is a bigger-than-you-realize temple complex with some pretty nifty architecture, including this Indian style prayer hall, where requests for safe driving are sent skyward in the hopes that passengers & cars will not be.
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This little shrine is tucked away behind a swimming pool that’s never open on the way to a country club that looks as though it was imported from Bali. I’d never visited it before but found myself up there as the sun was fading today. A couple of these were run through Hipstamatic, using the…
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Got up early this morning – as is now my tradition – to go and watch the first sunrise of the year. Hopefully the rest of the year is as bright as the sky was today.
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Kites are traditionally flown at New Year in Japan.
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It was the light that called me over, but it was the tiny little blue Kanegon at the base of the fox which made this my picture of the day.
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I’m sure I’ve mentioned tengu before. They’re big nosed mythical creatures with wings who were originally bad omens / demons, but slowly morphed into mountain protector spirits. This one can be found guarding the entrance to Yakuoin on Mount Takao, which is a traditional home for tengu devotees. More on Yakuoin at this link.
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A bunch of handmade haniwa at the Sakitama Kofun Museum.
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Ema, or votive tablets, showing the Ofuna Kannon. People write their hopes on these & hang them up so the gods can see them and hopefully hook them up.
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I’ve no idea what this logo is for but I like it. It made me think about mon – Mon (紋), also monshō (紋章), mondokoro (紋所), and kamon (家紋), are Japanese emblems used to decorate and identify an individual, a family, or (more recently) an institution or business entity. While mon is an encompassing term that may refer to any such device, kamon and mondokoro refer specifically to emblems used…