One of my SL traditions is hatsumode, the first shrine visit of the year. I really started it after 2016 when I was fortunate enough to be in Japan physically for the new year, and spent that midnight at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo, so it's partly a nostalgia thing of a very enjoyable trip. We made a lot of shrine (and temple- shrines are Shinto, temples are Buddhist) visits across the country that year as I went on a bit of a pilgrimage with a friend, and brought home a few hamaya and other lucky items (you are not supposed to keep them forever, but to return them to shrines to "release" their luck and get new ones the next year- I fear we do not keep to that tradition as we do not have such access to replace them every year, and they serve also as reminders of a wonderful time. And the challenge of carrying them on the train as we traveled across the country!). Shinto is beautiful- a rich mythology, with respect for the world around you and the impermanence of things. I struggle with that last bit sometimes, and it's a good reminder to appreciate it for its own fleeting beauty.
My hatsumode is always at Katakana Shrine, an outpost on mainland. This year I was honored to be invited to celebrate with them as well, and you can find a couple of free gifts from me by the lucky boards. There are a number of free and lucky board items at the base of the shrine- and if you walk up the stairs, there is also a hamaya from Katakana Shrine that you can carry around.
Two gifts from me: the platform okobo おこぼ geta 下駄 with tigers and lucky red sea bream designs come with 4 solid strap colors, and you can also use other geta strap HUDs to add more options if you desire.
socks: :::classical*Cute*clothing:::TabiSocks (kamo)
And tiger daruma だるま! I love daruma dolls, designed around a story about a Buddhist monk, they generally come without eyes, and you fill in one eye when you decide on a goal, and the second eye is filled in once you achieve it. White and yellow tigers are in the box at Katakana Shrine, you can also find a red clad zodiac tiger daruma as a free gift at Japonica. Anyone can touch the eyes to fill or clear them- touch and hold for 5 seconds for a menu to lock the goals on your daruma so no one else can change them on you.
Katakana Shrine will be celebrating the new year for the month of January.
Since I can't goshuin in SL (yet at least- collecting stamps and signatures from shrines and temples in a special book- it's a record of places you've visited and if they were open, we got them!), I collect hamaya, ceremonial "demon breaking arrow", from shrines at the new year. Other shrines you can find things at include:
tonarino has a hamaya at their shrine, check out the rest of the sim, and find the way up to cat town!
kingyo jingu, an ethereal shrine on the water (use shared environment!)
hanpu jinja at japan canvas has a shrine for the new year, with a hamaya. For the fireworks, you might wish to set the environment to night.
Japonica has a shrine, at the back of the center building, with a hamaya. I really enjoy the builds each event at Japonica, aside from the shopping section, they have unique photo and landscaped areas. The larger buildings the stores are in this time can be walked into and through, and have hidden vignettes inside of them.
SHIKI Shinto has a trio of hamaya for a small donation to the shrine.
nekoma shrine has a number of hamaya and other lucky new year items to buy for a small donation to the shrine.
And if you join the group [[RH]] & [MB], you can get a few new year group gifts including hamaya between their stores (both of which are worth a look around, they do beautiful work). They come with a stand for displaying.
Okinawa's shrine has an ema board, the wooden prayer board that are often a bonus attached to a hamaya (I collected a few of those too- they are available year round, and you're supposed to write your prayers on them and leave them at the shrine, but again, souvenirs!), as well as a pair of tiger lanterns.
No comments:
Post a Comment