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komorëbi

The Sacred Experience

Professor Ōmichi’s second Komorebi column was in the August 31st issue of Jinja Shinpō, and she continued her discussion of the relationship between media and the sacred, specifically Shinto. She started by talking about a certain Buddhist temple in Kamakura (that is what she said — she didn’t say which one it was) that has forbidden photography throughout the precincts, unless you have specific permission. She said that she put her camera and smartphone away, and felt that the release from the obligation to, or at least expectation that one… Read More »The Sacred Experience

Led by Sacred Dance

The August 3rd issue of Jinja Shinpō also included the first article by another Komorebi author. Revd Yokota is a sacred dance instructor for Hiroshima Prefectural Jinjachō, and a junior priest at Yoshiura Hachiman Jinja (吉浦八幡神社). Her articles in this series will focus on her half-century and more of experience of sacred dance, and so the first one, naturally enough, is about how she got started. She was born into a priestly family (second daughter, third child). She was part of the family’s preparation for matsuri from a very early… Read More »Led by Sacred Dance

Forests at Jingū

The new set of authors for the Komorebi column in Jinja Shinpō are publishing their first instalments, and the July 27th issue included the first column by Yamamoto Yoshiya, who works in the forestry department at Isë Jingū. He promises to write about the forests, and so I anticipate reporting on his columns quite often. His first column is introductory. The forests around Jingū are divided into two parts — the Shin’iki (神域), “area of the kami”, and Kyūikirin (宮域林), “sanctuary area woodland”. The Shin’iki is the area immediately around… Read More »Forests at Jingū

Photography at Jinja

The new series of Komorebi has started, with a new set of authors. (The authors change every two years.) The May 18th issue of Jinja Shinpō included the first column from Ōmichi Haruka, an assistant professor at Kokugakuin University. She starts by saying that she always finds it difficult to take photographs at jinja and Buddhist temples. She feels that there is something disrespectful about photographing the sacred, whether kami or Buddha, and so she is always a bit reluctant, even though she has permission. She does not think she… Read More »Photography at Jinja

Heirs to the Jinja

The 1st December issue of Jinja Shinpō contained the new instalment of Revd Tagawa’s column, picking up the story after her marriage. She opens by saying that, ever since she became chief priest at the age of 24, she had worried about who would look after the jinja if she became pregnant and gave birth. And then, almost before she knew it, she was in her thirties, had been married for two years, and the ujiko had started asking whether there were going to be children soon. She was feeling… Read More »Heirs to the Jinja

A Priest’s Calling

One of the authors of the Komorëbi (“Sunlight Through Leaves”) column in Jinja Shinpō for the next two years is Revd Tagawa, the chief priest of Fukumo Hachimangū (“Fortunate Mother” Hachimangū) in Ōmachi Town (“Big Town” Town), Saga Prefecture, Kyūshū. Her first column was in the June 17th issue, and she wrote about how she came to be a priest. She was born in 1991, so this is a fairly recent story. She grew up some distance from the jinja, but Ōmachi is the smallest town in Saga Prefecture (Yes,… Read More »A Priest’s Calling