The first day of spring

節分万灯篭（setubun-mantoro)------節分means time when seasons change and especially the day before the beginning of spring. 万灯篭means many lanterns.
This event has been holding from about eight hundreds years ago. About 3000 lanterns are lit at Kasuga-Grand-Shrine on the nights of 節分（setubun, on February 3rd) and お盆（obon, on August,14th and 15th).

From old days , offering light for divine has the same meaning to pray with offerings. We devote, moving our cordiality to light,I heard.

Kasuga-Grand-Shrine enshrine the Davine of Fujiwara clan originally. This event was started by donation of lanterns from Fujiwara-clan in Heian period of 8~9century.

There are a lot of stone-lanterns in the precinct.

 

Each of the patterns made by the metal outside lanterns is different because many people devoted their own original ones. There are many lanterns decorated with its heraldry or has the  name of contributors with kanji character.
This lantern was devoted by 直江兼続（he is a famous samurai in 16-17century and his armor helmet has the big character "love (愛）" in front of it.）He devoted this by his daughter's name 松。

Many stone lanterns to the approach to the shrine were lit on the night .

The next day of this event is the first day of Spring,according to the calendar. But it's pretty cold today.


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Birds came in our winter garden. My husband hung a can put fruits fragment from the branch at the near window of the dining room. So we can enjoy their figures through the window,having meals.

A white -eye are eating a persimmon that a bulbul dropped.

I am surprised his appetite. They come to here many times a day and eat greedily and drop many food. They got here as their territory.

I don't know this bird's name. It's too yellow for a sparrow.

This bird's favorite is  banana, I wonder. But this is too small for banana.

Other four kinds of birds come but their motion is too fast to take photo for me.


                                         Thank you for visiting, Dear  friends!