The event for good luck

                              I wish you happiness in 2014, my dear friends!



I visited two auspicious events at the beginning of the year.

The first,
Osaka district is a center of commerce. So many merchants or businesspeople especially visit Ebisu-Shrine to get good luck, fortune on the 10th of January.
Ebisu-Shrines enshrine God Ebisu.
God ebisu is one of seven gods in Japan and have a fishing rod in the right hands, holding a big sea bream under the left arm. This god was a god of fishing in the old days. But after commerce started developing in the Middle Ages people began to believe as god of prosperity of business,too.

I visited Saraki-Shrine in Nara district that enshrine God Ebisu.

 

These women are called Fuku-Musume(Fuku means good luck, Musume means girl) and they attach ornaments to a small bamboo and shake bells to call happiness for visitor. In this shrine, they usually work for a big company but they volunteer on this day. How beautiful today's Fuku-Musumes are!





The second,
舞楽始式（The first dance of the year) in Kasuga-Grand-Shrine.

The dances came from the Asian Continent in 7or 8 century and Japan own dances have being preserved. This tradition were handed down three organizations where  are in Kyoto district,Nara district,Osaka district.
Today's dance was dedicated by Nara's organization.



        胡飲酒（konjyu) The king of the country of Hu dances intoxicated to alcohol, I heard.

　　　振鉾三節（enbu-sansetu) dance for praying that people live in security, 三節means honoring the heaven, the earth, the spirit ,I heard.

       長保楽（chobouraku)

                                      Thank you for coming.