Sunday, November 20, 2005
Tori No Ichi
Today, we took our bicycles and went to Hanazonojinja, a Shinto Shrine in Shinjuku, to have a look at the Tori no Ichi Fair "festival of the rooster" (open-air market). This is a famous annual event held in November on the days of the Tori (Rooster). In the Japanese traditional calendar, modeled after the Chinese one, the years, days, and hours are represented by a repeating cycle of 12 animals: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, and boar. In most years there are only two days of the rooster in November, but sometimes there are three. It is said that in such years, there will be many fires.
There are numerous food stands around and we enjoyed the customary yakisoba and yakitori for lunch.
This event started during the Edo period and still continues today. These fairs are held at various Shinto shrines around the country where many people come around to pray for good health, good fortune and good business. They buy colorful kumade, or rakes, from the many vendors who set up stalls in and around the shrines (see picture below).
These Kumade are decorated with good-luck items such as masks, replicas of gold coins, and miniature treasure ships and chests.The good luck only lasts for one year and one has to buy another Kumade every year 
-- many people or shops buy a larger one each time to increase their good fortune.
