Purify and recharge your spirit for the summer!!
From ancient times, the Japanese people practiced 夏越之祓Nagoshi-no-Harae, a prayer to purify and to rid themselves of the first half of the year’s 厄難yakunan (illness, accident, fight etc…) or “bad luck” and kegare, or “withered spirit”. Over the course of the first half of the year, the energy of a person’s spirit is diminished by tiredness, stress, and other pressures, so Nagoshi-no-Harae rituals are performed every June to cleanse and refresh this energy and recharge the spirit. Shinto Shrine of Shusse Inari in America provides these traditional services with mystic rituals that have been passed down through the generations of our family.
One such ritual is the use of 人形 hitogata on which have been written the mystic words, “十種神宝Tokusa-no-kamdakara.” Hitogata are slips of paper cut into the shape of a person, and it is believed that the hitogata represents the person concerned. In the Nagoshi-no-Harae service, the hitogata is thought to carry all of that person’s kegare.
[How to use hitogata]
1. Write your name and age on the front of hitogata.
2. Wipe on the body part one wishes to improve or renew with the hitogata.
For example, one suffering from knee pain would wipe the hitogata on their knee, or, if they wish to be smarter, on their head.
3. Breathe upon the hitogata.
4. Complete the application form and select the package plan. The application form and package plan list are here! Additional application form and hitogata are here.
Dear international participant(s), we kindly ask that you cover shipping costs for your plan (hitogata plan excluded). Thank you for your understanding. Please note that local customs regulations may prohibit the shipping of Chinowa and rice to some countries.
5. Prepare the service fee.
6. Mailed (it must reach us no later than June 27th) or hand to the Shrine staff before the Nagoshi-no-Harae
NOTE: We are still not sure whether we will be able to hold the service open to the public due to the current pandemic. We will announce via our newsletter, website and SNS.
We will hold the Nagoshi-no-Harae service on June 30th with your hitogata and notify you of the completion of the service. We will then send your package if you requested one.
