Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha
Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu
V O L U M EI V

J A N U A R Y

2 0 0 8Where ancient traditions thrive

Welcome the Year of the Rat
明けましておめでとうございます。 Happy New Year!
The dawn of a new year overflows with hope that invites us to reflect
and to recreate ourselves anew.
This year, may we all find a connection to spirit that can guide andnurture us in our growth as a nation and as individuals. Open your mind to
new possibilities, discover the divinity within yourself and empower yourself
to achieving your goals and purpose in life.
Positive energies and blessings go out to all in this year of the Rat.
Reverend Masa Takizawa

2008 is the year of the EarthRat, symbolized by the two elementsof earth and water. This is a year of
clouded perceptions, and unexpected
outcomes.
2008 brings movement andprogress, but there is also much underlying tensions and confrontations .
Being the first animal in theChinese zodiac, the Rat year promises
new beginnings. The year will begin
positively, but then backslide as weedge towards the end of the year, whenthe element of Water becomes overwhelmingly strong.
Being a year with heavy waterelements, there will be accidents andnatural disasters involving water, earthand fire, including floods, tsunami andother water disasters.
The clash between the fire andwater elements will bring more thanthe usual number of air related accidents. The last Rat year in 1996 saw
20 major airline crashes in the U.S.
The earth element will bringearth related disasters such as earthquakes, landslides and accidents on theground, such as traffic accidents. The
effects of global warming will also

intensify in 2008.
Earth elements relate to thestomach in humans. As such, there
will be more than the usual cases offood poisoning, digestive and stomach problems.
Diabetes will also be prevalent as the pancreas is considered anearth element in Chinese medicine.
It is also a hyperactive andrestless year of potential nervous
disorders and neurosis of every type.
It will be a good year to explore
relaxation methods such as meditation more thoroughly.
You will be more prone toillness and allergies this year as well,
so be sure to eat your vegetables andtake those vitamins!
2008 will be an intellectual
one, as the Rat is the curious professor of the zodiac. Expect a renewed
passion for knowledge, interest in thesciences and a hunger for travel andnew experiences.
Exchanging and communicating are the priorities of a Rat year.
We will all value companionship andlove more than anything else thisyear. It is said that people fall inlove easily during Rat years.
It will be a year of muchvolatile and radical changes for thepolitical scene and an unsettlingyear for governments around theworld.
In the previous Rat year of1948 the Jews of Palestine declared
independence and the State of Israel
was born on May 14, 1948.
Another major change occurred on May 26, 1948 when thenew racist government of South
Africa embraced Apartheid, bitterly
dividing the country and the world.
This year's Rat is a night
Rat, and so theft, break-ins, burglary and crime may go up, alongwith more scandals of corporate
greed and embezzlement.
The Rat year signifies a
new start and is a good time to startplanning and planting the seeds fora whole new cycle.
Having an understandingof the energetic dynamics of a new
12-year cycle can help you increaseawareness and preparation to takeadvantage of the natural cyclicaltrends in every aspect of your life.

Mahalo for your generous donations
Nozomi Abe
Thomas & Linda Agawa
Spring Al-Bassam
Bruce Allardice
Lois Arakaki
Yeiso & Violet Arakaki
Reiko Arakawa
Yuuki Balunso
Eilene Cabral
Dorothy Ching
Richard & Emily Ebina
Yuko Endo
Jennifer Faufata
Joyce Faufata
Joanne Fong
Danny Fosco
Toshiko Fujisaki
Dr. Michael Gerstenfeld
Mitsuaki Hanayagi IIRichard & Claudia Haraguchi
Doreen Higa
Jo Ann Hino
Toshiyuki Hirai
Ryuji & Yumi Hoshino
Mitsuru & Pam Igarashi
Nancy Ikuta
Dawn Isa
Kyoko Isa
Richard & Rachel Ishida
Japan 21st Century
Religious Committee
Japan Memorial Corporation
Japanese Kitchen Bamboo

Jinja Honcho - Tokyo, Japan
Lorraine Kadota
Dean & Carlyn Kagawa
Winfred Kaizuka
Diane Kanakuri
Jessie Kajiwara
Michael & Sonia Kajiwara
Arlene Kamei
Norman & June Kawabata
Yoshiko Kawakami
Sachiko Kele
Manabu Kikuchi
Sue Kimura
Sue Kinoshita
Shayne & Amy Kitano
Steve Knight
Elaine Komatsu
Ellen Kondo
Fumiaki & Mayumi Kono
Kotake Shokai
Joyce Kubokawa
Arthur N. Kubota
Kenneth & Janice Kunichika
James & Melba Kurashige
Ernest & Chiyoko Lau
Pat & Robyn Lorian
Malimar, Inc.
Peter Marshall
Ruthe Matsumoto
Matsuzaki Family
Matthew McNeff
Thelma Mitsuyoshi
Steven Miwa

Audrey Miyamoto
Frances Mochizuki
Aisha Morgan
Roy Morioka
Kathleen Nagato
Tracy Nagato
Shinken Naitoh
Wallace & Peggy Nakahara
E.Y. Nakamura
Pat & Jeanette Nakata
Masateru & Hatsuko Nakazato
Nakazato Fish Market
Yukiko Nielsen
Craig & Diane Nishida
Jill Nishida
Clyde & Gayle Nishimoto
Fumiko Nishimura
Diane Ogasawara
Mitsunobu & Mihoko Ohashi
Toshio & Gladys Okamura
Doris Okawa
Earl Okawa
Iris Okawa
Lois Okawa
Oomoto Kyo Headquarters
Reid Oshiro
Pacific Hi-Tak
Rissho Kosei Kai Headquarters
Deborah Robson
Kenneth & Kumiko Saiki
Adrian & Susan Sakata
Karen Sakata
Masayoshi & Lorraine Sawai

Makiko Serrana
Dee Shimamoto
Robert & Miyono Shimoda
Naomi Shishido
Alice Sugimoto
Sugimoto Family
Hideo Suzuki
Miyoko Taira
Nelson & Gail Tamashiro
Edwin Tanabe
Sharon Tanigawa
Dwight & Sandra TanoueClaudia & Christy Teruya
Sharon Toma
June Tomishima
George & Harumi Tsubota
Masao & Peggy Tsukida
James & Roberta Uesugi
Steve & Sharon Umeda
Wasabi & Nadaman
Dale & Naomi Yabiku
Eileen Yabiku
Edna Yaguchi
Calvin Yamada
Masue Yamada
Masumi Yamada
Kazuo Yamane
Gail Yamashiro
Keiko Yamazaki
Ronald & Emiko Yonemoto
Janelle Yoshida
Richard & Jane Yoshida
Cynthia Yumol

Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha - Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu is a 501C3 nonprofit church. All contributions are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

Japan 21st Century Religious Committee
Pearl Harbor Memorial Service
Twenty five members of the Japan 21st Century
Religious Committee visited the shrine on December 5.
The delegation has visited Hawaii every year for the past twodecades to participate in the annual Memorial ceremony at thePearl Harbor Memorial on December 7th. The ceremony ishosted by the US Navy and National Park Service at Kilo Pier.
More than 3,800 attended the 2007 observance of the1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.
Representatives from the Catholic Diocese of Hiroshima,
Shingon-shu, Kawasaki Daishi, Iwashimizu Hachimangu ofKyoto, Rissho Kosei Kai, Omoto Kyo and other religious
institutions participated in the tour.

MAHALO Hatsumode Volunteers
Milly Chang
Thomas Chong
Marissa Choy
Darlene Estrada
Amy Feng
Alyssa Fujimoto
Brandon Goda
Bryson Goda

Judy Guo
Kevin Guo
Mitsuaki Hanayagi II
Bob Harada
Doreen Higa
Junko Hioki
Ryuji Hoshino
Nina Hung

Arashi Igarashi
Emi Igarashi
Kai Igarashi
Pam Igarashi
Arthur Isa
Juston Isa
Kyoko Isa
Dayna Kaneshiro

Tracy Kim
Jennifer Kuang
Kenneth Kunichika
Brandon Lee
Kelleen Loo
Jon Lower
Jennifer Lum
Sylvia Luong
Ruthe Matsumoto
Jack McMillan
Scott MatsuoAudrey Miyamoto

Yusuke Miyauchi
Aaron Nagao
Milena Naitoh
Shinken Naitoh
Jon Nakagawa
Hatsuko Nakazato
Craig NishidaDiane Nishida
Jill Nishida
Fumiko Nishimura
Axel Obara
Mihoko Ohashi

Mitsunobu Ohashi
Miyono Shimoda
Charlene Stell
Kiyoyasu Tanaka
Naomi Teramoto
Annie Tran
Thanh Vo
Hiroshi Yamaji
Eli Yokoyama
Yasuko Yokoyama
James Yonemura
Richard Yoshinaga

Seijin Shiki - Coming of Age Ceremony
Seijin Shiki or “Coming ofAge” ceremony is celebrated on thesecond Monday of January.
All teens who turn twentyyears old in that year celebrate Seijinno hi which officially marks the beginning of adulthood and the legal
age for voting, drinking, and smoking in Japan.
Seijin no Hi or Coming-ofAge Day is observed as a national
holiday, and celebrations are held
nationwide, sponsored by city or
prefectural governments.
Although styles of ceremonies differ from region to region, it iscommon for 20-year-olds to dress informal outfits including long-sleeved
kimono called furisode and montsuki
hakama for men.
Seijin Shiki comes from theancient ceremony of genpuku which
was generally observed between theages of 13 and 16 from the Nara period (710 - 794) to the Heian period(794 - 1192).
Around the 16th century,
warriors changed the ceremony into
genpuku shiki and added a few morerituals to the already elaborate ceremony.
Young men had their bangs
cut, indicating that they becameadults. Young women wore a skirt
like garment over their outfit called

mo and styled their hair in an up-do.
Young women also appliedohaguro, a dye made from ironsoaked in tea or sake, which waseffective in combating tooth decay.
It was deemed fashionable to havedark, black teeth which required
several applications of the dye
throughout the day.
Later, these coming-of-age
ceremonies were widespread among
commoners, and lasted until the endof the Edo period.
There was no set date for
Seijin shiki until it became a national holiday in 1948. Seijin Shiki
was an auspicious ceremony observed by families in accordancewith their own traditions, especiallythose of the imperial or samurai
lineage.

Genpuku Shiki ceremony of a samuraifamily from the 1880s

成人の日は、新成人達が両親や周りの大人達に保護されてきた子供時代を終え、自立し、大人の社会へ仲間入りすることを自覚するための儀式（成人式）を行う日です。

Recreation of an aAncient Genpuku Shiki
ceremony performed at a shrine in Japan

各地方自治体で成人の日に行われる成人式では、女性は振袖、男性はスーツや羽織りなどの正装に身を包み、市長などから祝福の言葉を贈られます。
成人を祝う風習は古来から存在していました。男子は、髪を結い冠または烏帽子をつけ、服装を改め成人した事を周囲にCity sponsored Seijin Shiki ceremony

示しました。
女子の 場合は "裳"という腰から下にまとう衣服を身に付ける裳着〔もぎ〕、髪を結い上げる髪上〔かみあげ〕、歯を黒く染めるお歯黒付けを成人の儀礼としました。
一方貴族のように位の高い人々のみにとどまらず、各地の村々でも村人たちが定めた成人の儀式が行われていました。
しかしそれは、現在のように20歳を越えれば成人といった年齢基準ではなく、例
えば「1日に60キロの柴を刈って12キロ売り歩けたら一人前の男である」など年齢に関係なくその行為が出来れば成人として認めるといったものでした。
これらの儀式は成年式・成女式などと呼ばれていましたが明治以降一部の地域を除き、衰退してゆきました。
明治以降になると、男子は兵役につく義務を課せられ、兵役につくためには徴兵検査を受ける必要があり、この徴兵検査が成人式の意味をもち、成人式制定のきっかけとなりました。

Sagicho - Burning of the old Omamori and Ofuda
Sagicho, also known as Dondo-yaki, Ombe-yaki, Hokkengyo, Hochoji, Sankuro-yaki, Saito-yaki, is anancient ceremony originating in China to express appreciation to and purify by burning old ofuda, omamori and newyears decorations.
This year, Sagicho was held on Sunday, January 20 from 2:00 pm.
Mahalo to volunteers for their kokua in preparing the old omamori andofuda for burning by painstakingly removing plastic and metal ornaments andother non-burnable items to prevent toxic fumes from harming the environment.
We would appreciate your depositing all old omamori and ofuda in thespecially marked box beside the shrine by January 5 of each year.
Kadomatsu and dolls are not accepted.

MAHALO Volunteers
Thomas ChongBob Harada
Emi Igarashi
Kai Igarashi
Pam Igarashi

Kyoko Isa
Jon Lower
Shinken Naitoh
Axel Obara
Naomi Teramoto

当宮では、1月20日午後２時より左義長を執り行いました。
一年間お守りいただいた古い御神札やお守りは、粗末にならないように感謝の気持ちを込めて神社に納めます。
納める先の神社は、授与品を受けた神社が望ましいとされていますが、違う神社のものでも当宮に納めて差しつかえありません。
ダイオキシンなど有害物質の発生が社会問題になっている昨今、行事を守り後世に伝えていくためにも、当宮ではお焚き上げの前にプラスチックやビニール類を極力取り外しておりますので古札は毎年、１月5日までに神社にお納め下さい。

JCCH New Years Ohana Festival
On January 13, the JCCH and Mo‘ili‘ili Field was transformed into a showcase of Japanese cuisine and entertainment;
cultural art displays and demonstrations; a craft fair and book sale.
Ｔhere were exciting activities for children including
kimono dressing, make-n-take activities, games, jumpers andstorytelling.
Mahalo to volunteers Shinken Naitoh, Bob Harada, Naomi
Teramoto, Bryson Goda and Arthur Isa for helping at the shrinebooth.

Olomea Street Construction
January 2008 - November 2008

7:00am - 3:00 pm

Construction is underway by Ideal Construction for a relief sewer on
Olomea, Halona and Kohou Streets. The $4.5 million project began on February 4,
2008, for completion in November 2008. Major construction in front of the shrine
is scheduled to take place in April.
Meanwhile, we apologize for any inconvenience due to the road closuresof Olomea Street. Please feel free to call the shrine at 841-4755 or Bob Shirai at
the Project Hotline 216-2412 before visiting the shrine.
ONE-LANE CLOSURESIn the case of a one-lane closure, a sign will be posted at Houghtailing and Olomea
allowing local traffic only, which includes shrine visitors. Please proceed to theshrine using the usual route on Olomea Street.
TWO LANE CLOSURESIn the case of a two-lane road closure, a sign posted at Houghtailing and Olomea
will direct traffic to the shrine from Kohou Street. Two-way traffic will be allowed
on Olomea Street with entry and exit from Kohou Street only.
KAMA LANE
You may also use the Kama Lane entry from King Street, across the Kapalama
Post Office. The Kama Lane gate is closed to cars, but always open to pedestrians.
Please park on Kama Lane, in front of the shrine gate and walk through the swinggate. Please disregard the No-Parking sign.

Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha
Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu
1239 Olomea Street
Honolulu, HI 96817-3343

SHRINE CALENDAR

神社スケジュールFebruary 二月
10General Membership Meeting
総会
Tsukinami-sai Monthly Service
月次祭

24

Hanayagi Dancing Academy
Garage Sale at the shrine

March 三月
2April56

Tsukinami-sai Monthly Service
月次祭

四月
Clean-up & Mochi pounding
Spring Thanksgiving Festival