Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Mikuji





This is at the big temple ("tera") in Asakusa. I don't know what the white lantern things are for.
I went there with my buddies, and we had fun with o-Mikuji (fortunes) there. The "o" is placed in front of the noun "mikuji" as an honorific.








Here's the set up: a stand with 100 numbered drawers (see the picture). There is a slot for your money (100 yen, labeled 100円). The tall hexagonal metal box (labeled おみくじ) has a small hole at one side, and contains -theoretically- 100 numbered sticks that correspond to the drawers.



My friend demonstrates...




STEP 1: pay the money (the gods are watching :P)
STEP 2: shake the metal box (noisily)
STEP 3: invert box up-side down and read the stick that comes out.







STEP 4: find the corresponding drawer
STEP 5: pull out the fortune (written on a small paper)
STEP 6: read. (duh)

Oh no! She got "Bad Fortune No 79" (it is seriously called that)
It is bad luck to take a bad fortune paper with you away from the temple, so...


There is a convenient rack for such things!
STEP 7: Fold your bad fortune, and tie it on the rack.
Yokatta! ("yay")















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