Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha
Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 9 SEPTEMBER 2014

View event photos at www.flickr.com/photos/Kotohira-dazaifu

Choyo-no-Sekku - Chrysanthemum Festival
Choyo no Sekku, or Chrysanthemum (Kiku) Festival is an ancientfestival celebrated on the ninth dayof the ninth lunar month.
Double odd numbers - 1,3,5,7,9
are considered extremely auspicious.
As such, most major Japanese festivals occur in odd months: January 1- New Years Day, March 3 – Girl’sDay (Momo no Sekku), May 5 Boy’s Day (Tango no Sekku) , July 7-Tanabata and September 9 -Choyono Sekku.
The ninth day of the ninth lunar
month was considered to be particularly potent because of the belief thatthe number nine, being the highest

odd number, was auspicious andtherefore “two nines” (Ninth Day ofthe Ninth Month) was considered tobe the ultimate in propitiousness.
On this day, beautifully cultivatedchrysanthemums were displayed andadmired while drinking chrysanthemum-laced sake.
Chrysanthemums have long been
associated with longevity because
they bloom magnificently during theFall months when the rest of nature
seems to be dying.
Chrysanthemum is also known for
its medicinal value, including an aid
in recovery from influenza, acne, theprevention of sore throat and thereduction of fever.
In Korea, it is known for its
medicinal use for making people
more alert. In western herbal medicine, chrysanthemum tea is drunk totreat circulatory disorders such asvaricose veins and atherosclerosis.
The chrysanthemum was first
introduced to Japan during the Nara
period (710 – 793 AC). Eventually,
the 16-petal Chrysanthemum
became associated with the Emperorof Japan.
Choyo no Sekku was celebrated
at the shrine on Sunday, September
7 by partaking of the traditional
Chrysanthemum sake.

MAHALO for your generous donations
Thomas & Linda Agawa
Doughty Ohana
Bob Harada
Matthew & Mariko Hatae
Luke Inoue
Kyoko Isa
James & Melba Kurashige
Link Bridge LLC
John MarshallMatsumoto Ohana
Nanae Mori-Tanabe

Shinken & Marilyn Naitoh
Joan Okimoto-Chin
Jan Ota
Russell & Georgene Ridela
Akiko Sanai
Lacey-Sherae Tojo
Lauren-Ashly Tojo
Sheryl Tojo
Melissa Wong
Steven & Nobue Yoshida

Upcoming
Events

September 28Blessing of Honolulu Shokudo Bimi
Rev Takizawa performed ablessing for Honolulu Shokudo
Bimi on Thursday, August 28.
Honolulu Shokudo Bimi islocated in Yataimura, on the 2nd
floor of Shirokiya and has a wide
Array of Japanese on dishes.
Bimi mean “delicacy”
in Japanese.
Pictured to the right is
Rev Takizawa and Leo
Uchida, owner and chefof Honolulu Shokudo Bimi.

Blessing of Salt Lake Laundromat
Rev Takizawa performed a blessing for Salt Lake Laundromat on Tuesday,
September 9.
Salt LakeLaundromat is
located in theSalt Lake Shopping Center andis owned byRussell andGeorgene Ridela.
Ridela.

3:00 pmOtaki Jinja
Otaki Jinja is one of the seven Jinja enshrined at Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha-Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu.
Otaki Jinja is the guardian kami of Otake City of Hiroshima-ken and was established on theNinth day of the Ninth lunar month in 597 in Iyagasako, Hiroshima.
The shrine was dedicated to Tagitsuhime no Mikoto and was one of the seven associate shrines of Itsukushima
Jinja of Miyajima. As such, Otaki Jinja shares the same shrine crest as Itsukushima Jinja.
According to ancient legend, Susanoo no Mikoto, was ordered by the kami to have domain over the seas, but instead wished to visit his mother in the underworld (Ne no kuni). As a result, he was banished from the heavens. He
next visited his sister Amaterasu in the Plain of High Heaven (Takamanohara), but he was suspected of insurrection
and underwent a trial by a form of ancient divination called “ukei”to prove his loyalty.
Facing the river of Ameno-yasukawa, Amaterasu-Ōmikami asked for a sword called “Totsuka-no-tsurugi” and broke
it into three pieces. She purified the pieces in a well called Ame-no-manai or True well of Heaven. She thencrunched the sword and spat out three kami. The kami were named
Tagirihime-no-mikoto, Ichikishima-hime-no-mikoto and Tagitsuhime-nomikoto. Tagitsuhime-no-mikoto is the kami enshrined at Otaki Jinja.
The three kami produced were females, which was taken as
evidence of Susanoo's innocence. Amaterasu then commanded thethree kami to descend to earth.
There, they were enshrined by the Munakata and Minuma clans inTsukushi (Kyushu) and came to be called the "three kami of Munakata."
All three kami are believed to have been protectors of the oceans
andare responsible for guarding ocean traffic .
In 1570, Otaki Jinja moved to the Nanatsuguro area of Hiroshimaaand was known as Tanaka Daimyojin Shrine.
In 1740, Otaki Jinja made a final move to its present location on Mt.
Shidayama and revived its original name - Otaki Jinja. The Honden(inner sanctum) was built in 1777.
In October of 1930, a Gobunrei (symbol of the kami) from Otaki Jinja
was authorized for worship in Hawaii and the Otaki Jinja Hosan Kai wasestablished by the first President, Teiichi Sugimoto with a membershipof over 120 Issei familes from Otake Village. The Gobunrei was transported from Hiroshima and placed in the inner sanctum of Hawaii
Kotohira Jinsha .
Steep steps lead to Otaki Jinja and the panoramic views from Mt. Shidayama

Continued on page 3

Continued from Page 3
Otake Shijinkai, was also established for immigrants fromOtake city in the early 1940s and was active until the early 1990s.
Former president of the shrine, Nobuo Hayashi served as theOtaki Jinja Hosan kai and Otaki Shijinkai president for many years.
Otake City borders Iwakuni City of Yamaguchi and the Marine
Corp Air Station Iwakuni, which is home to approximately half ofthe 1st Marine Aircraft Wing .
Some notable locals who immigrated from Otake village are
Mamoru Matsumoto, founder of M. Matsumoto Store, now
known as Matsumoto Shave Ice and Frank Oda, an artist,
illustrator and founder of Hawaii Glass Arts.
A few years ago, Kalaheo High School and Otake High School
became sister schools to promote cultural understanding between the sister cities of Honolulu and Hiroshima.

First stone monument on the left, is that ofTadaichi Oda, former President of Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha.-Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu. The stonemonuments overlooks Otake City.

Keiro no Hi 敬老の日 - Respect for the Aged Day
Respect for the Aged Day is a Japanese holiday celebrated annually to honor elderly citizens. It began in 1966
as a national holiday on September 15. Since 2003, Respect for the Aged Day is held on the 3rd Monday of September due to the Happy Monday System.
The Chinese social organization is based on family and Confucianism has held filial piety as their cardinal virtue.
According to early Japanese documents, Confucianism was introduced to Japan via Korea in the year 404 CE.
Some of the important Confucian principles are humaneness, sincerity, filial piety, loyalty and morality.
Neo-Confucianism was the foundation and official guiding philosophy of the Tokugawa period. Harmony wasmaintained by a reciprocal relationship of justice between a superior, who was urged to be benevolent, and asubordinate, who was urged to be obedient and to observe propriety.
There is one difference between Chinese and Japanese Confucianism. Chinese Confucianism places filial piety
before loyalty, whereas Japanese Confucian ethics places loyalty before filial piety.
Chinese morality is founded on the family structure, with the most important being that of parent and childand its blood-related clans. The Japanese moral system is founded on a set of kinship relations that go beyond
blood ties and extend to members who have no blood relationship, with the primary tie being that between
leader and follower.
Japan is said to have a high population of senior citizens that live to be well over 100 years old. Some reasons
attributed to the longevity include: strong community bonds, plenty of exercise, healthy and low-fat diet, lowstress way of life, strong work ethics that keep them working as long as they can
and a busy social life
Concern for the health of the aged receives a great deal ofattention, and nearly free medical care for people over 70 years ofage is national policy.