Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha - Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu
M AY 2020

Th e M ay Tsu k in am isai M on t h ly Cer em on y w as per f or m ed on M ay 24

M AHALO
for you r Don at ion s
Spring Al-Bassam
Sarah Brekke
Tomoko Burgos
Hanayagi Dancing
Academy HI Foundation
James & Melba Kurashige
Del Lau
Mike Lee
Steve Miwa
Roy Morioka
Shinken & Marilyn Naitoh
Craig & Diane Nishida
Mitsunobu Ohashi
Akiko Sanai
Gary & Linda Shinsato
Alison Treanor
Miwa Yamamuro
Glenn & Junko Yonemura

Pr ivat e Blessin gs
A Memorial service andburial was performedon May 29 - the shrine's
first private ceremony
since the Stay-Home
Order on March 25.
Modifications tofuneral rituals weremade to ensure thesafety of theimmediate family members who have been
waiting patiently since mid-March to honor thememory of their beloved family member.
The service
and burial
was sharedwith relatives
and friends
via socialmedia.

The larger limbs of theFicus Benjamina was cut
by Rev. Takizawa to
encourage new growth,minimize disease, allow
better light penetrationand increase safety byremoving dead anddamaged limbs.
The lower branches wereleft for use in Tamagushi.

CALENDAR

Tan go No Sek k u
Tango no Sekku originated in Japan
during the Nara period (710-794)
and is one of the five seasonalrites performed at the Imperial
court.
"Tan" means beginning and "go"means horse. Tango no Sekku
originally meant, "the first day of
the Horse of the 5th month."
Sekku means seasonal celebration.

decorate the entrances to homes
to ward off evil.

5Many also eat Kashiwa mochi, amochi wrapped in oak leaves on
May 5 to ensure a year of goodhealth.

3 pm (In t er n al)
Tsu k in am isai M on t h ly Ser vice

Au gu st2

10 am - 1 pm (Can celled)
Back -To-Sch ool Blessin g

Sept em ber

Tango no Sekku, was a time ofseasonal change when people
were prone to catching colds andflu viruses.

27

As such, dried iris flowers andyomogi mugwort were steeped asteas or scattered in baths todetoxify the body.
Fresh Iris flowers and yomogi
mugwort were also used toJu ly

3 pm (In t er n al)
Au t u m n Th an k sgivin g Fest ival

Sh ich igosan - exact dates, times
and logistics to be determined inearly August.
Koinobori carp streamers billowing
in the breeze, heralding the arrivalof Tango no Sekku or Boy's Day.

Please check our website
w w w.jin ja.u s or Facebook page in
mid-August.

View Even t s pics at : w w w.f lick r .com / k ot oh ir a-dazaif uBaby Rit u als
Japan has many food traditions
connected to festivals andreligious rituals.
Okuizome is a tradition that began
during the Heian period (794 1185) and is usually observed on
or after the 100th day after thebaby's birth.
Parents brush food against theinfant's lips to symbolically feed
the child in hopes that he or she
will never go without food during
their life.
It is also called Hashi-zoroe (chopstick preparation) or Hashi-hajime(first chopsticks) because it thefirst time the child will be fed withchopsticks.
The Okuizome ritual also includes aHagatame-ishi or teeth

strengthening rock. A small
smooth stone is rubbed on thegums of the infant to ensure
strong teeth.
In ancient Japan, it was thoughtthat strong teeth and healthy
gums were the secret to longevity.
A recent study, published in theCommunity Dentistry and Oral
Epidemiology Journal investigatedthe link between tooth loss andmortality.
Results found that those with 20
teeth or more at the age of 70 had
a considerably higher chance ofliving longer than those with lessthan 20 teeth. Oral healthindicators such as gum disease
have regularly been linked to awide range of general healthproblems such as heart disease,strokes, diabetes and dementia.
In recent years, the shrine has had
increased interest in and several
requests for Hagatame- ishi.
Please contact the shrine if you
would like to receive a Hagatameishi. The rock comes withinstructions on how to performthe ritual at home.
Congratulations to Sara forcelebrating Okuizome andHagatame-ishi on April 19.

Follow u s on In st agr am : kot oh ir aDazaif uRen ew alRev. Takizawa has been cleaning and sanitizing the shrine meticulously
throughout the Stay-Home Order. The Kotohira-side altar area was wiped
down and all fabric decorations were taken down and spot cleaned. Asheer inner veil was recently purchased as a replacement for the curtain
and wooden drop curtain that was slashed by a vandal a year ago.

The new wooden drop curtains
were slightly long. Rev. Takizawa
shortened the length byremoving the brocade trim,
hemming the wooden slats tosize and resewing the brocadetrim.

M em or ial Day
The Honolulu Shinto Renmei'sannual Memorial Day service
was canceled due to Covid-19,
however on May 24, Rev.
Takizawa visited and offeredprayers at Punchbowl, Makikiand Moiliili cemeteries.
Memorial Day, whichoriginated after the Civil War,commemorates the sacrificesof those who have fought anddied in the American armedforces.
On Memorial Day, let us pause
to reflect upon our blessings
as a nation.
We are grateful to our Armed
Forces for the freedom weenjoy, for opportunities toflourish and for the securityof our land.

Visit ou r w ebsit e: w w w.jin ja.u s

Another annual tradition for Rev. Takizawa isto visit the grave of Rev. Ku n isu k e Sak ai,
the 4th Guji Chief Priest of the shrine.
Rev. Sakai arrived from Yamaguchi-ken in
1916 to serve as Guji of Lahaina Daijingu
from 1937 until his deportation in 1945.
Rev. Sakai was taken hours after the attack
on Pearl Harbor and confined at Sand Islandwith his wife Fujie and daughter Lillian. He
was deported to Japan after the war andreturned to Hawaii on October 7, 1957 toserve at Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha from August
15, 1959 until his retirement in 1971.