Volume 3 Issue 6

Taku Taku Matsuri

September 2013

Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha
Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu

WHERE ANCIENT TRADITIONS THRIVE

Hundreds of local Anime and Manga fans gathered tocelebrate Otaku-ism at the inaugural Taku Taku Matsuri
held at the shrine on August 25
Many reveled in Cosplay Chess, Maid Café, HostClub holding court, mini water gun fights and watermelon smashing contests scattered throughout the property.
The event was conceived and organized by Yuka
Nagaoka and Kell Komatsubara, who are hoping to have
Otaku events several times a year at various venues.

View more shrine photos at www.flickr.com/photos/kotohiradazaifu

MAHALO for your generous donations
Thomas & Linda Agawa
Sy & Yumi Farinas
Anthony Fujii
Nicholas Fujii
Sakae Fujii
Bob Harada

Kyoko Isa
Lorraine Kadota
Dean & Carlyn Kagawa
James & Melba Kurashige
Roy Morioka
Reiko Morooka

Shinken & Marilyn Naitoh
William & Mikiko Stowers
Kokoro Tanaka
Ailene Tanji
Violet Yonekura

Choyo no Sekku
September 9 is Choyo no Sekku,
or Chrysanthemum (Kiku) Festival.
According to Taoism, doubleodd or yang numbers - 1,3,5,7,9 are
considered extremely auspicious.
As such, most major Japanesefestivals occur in odd months January 1 - New Years Day, March
3 – Girl’s Day (Momo no Sekku),May 5 - Boy’s Day (Tango noSekku) , July 7 - Tanabata and

September 9 - Choyo no Sekku.
Chrysanthemums have long
been associated with longevity
because kiku bloom magnificently
during the Fall months when therest of nature seems to be dying.
Choyo no Sekku was celebrated at the shrine on Sunday,
September 1 by partaking thetraditional Chrysanthemum sake.

Hilo Daijingu
With the departure of Rev. Daizo Watanabe inMay, a new priest was welcomed at Hilo Daijingu
on June 21.
Rev Naohiro Hotta was born in Yoro, Gifu
prefecture in 1980 and graduated from Kogakkan
University in Ise, which would make him a kohai
of Rev Takizawa.
Rev Hotta served at Achi Jinja inKurashiki, Okayama upon graduation.
Last February, he was chosenfrom among 10 applicants that applied for the position of Chief Priest
at Hilo Daijingu and was authorizeda work visa in June of this year.
Rev. Hotta is married with onechild.
Page 2

HA W A I I K O T O HI R A J I NS HA

Congratulations
Scott Motoda andDarcy Kagawa wereunited in marriage ina solemn Shinto
ceremony on August 24
at The Kahala Hotel.
Congratulations tothe newly weds as
they embark on thegreatest adventure ofhuman interaction.

Keiro-no-Hi Blessing at The Plaza
Rev. Takizawa performed a blessing for thetenants of The Plaza on Thursday, September 5
for longevity and good health and to honor thecontributions that they made to build the community that we live in.
September 17 is aJapanese national holiday
called Keiro-no-hi or
Respect-for-the-AgedDay.
It is a day to give respect to the elderly, whohave served society formany years, and celebrate
their longevity.
VOLUME 3 ISSUE 6Page 3

A Piece of History
Below is a photo of the shrine
taken sometime in the early 1940s.
There were three shrines enshrined at that time - Kotohiragu,
Shirasaki Hachimangu and Otaki
Jinja.
In 1931, the shrine purchased thepresent site - a 50,075 sq. ft parcelof land with individual donations
from members and the community.
Through fundraisers like
Katsudo-shashin movie viewings,
the shrine was able to raise funds tobuild a shrine office and culturalfacilities.
A torii gate was erected in 1934and in March the same year, a temizusha or absolution water basin wasdonated by the Fujin-kai.
In 1935, a pair of Koma-inu andtoro lanterns were donated by thecongregation. In 1936, a communitycenter, martial arts center, kyudo
archery range, outdoor theater, kendo hall and sumo ring were built.
By 1940, the shrine was home tonumerous sumo, archery, martial artstournaments and cultural activities
for the Japanese community.
By 1941, annual festivals werebeing celebrated for all three shrines;
Kotohira Jinsha, Shirasaki Hachimangu and Otaki Jinja, with an evergrowing membership of over 1,200families.
However, the Japanese attack on

Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941
threw the whole nation into tumoil.
In the worst abuse of government authority in the history of theU.S., more than 120,000 JapaneseAmericans were interned in relocation camps throughout the country.
Issei leaders of the community
in Hawaii were immediately sent tointernment camps on Sand Island,Honouliuli, Maui, Kauai, Lanai,Molokai, Big Island and theMainland.
All religious and cultural activi-ties were terminated as the war continued. All ties with the shrines inJapan - Kotohira-gu, Shirasaki Hachimangu and Otaki Jinja were also
severed.
In 1943, the interned Rev.
Isobe was deported to Japan, forcing officers to call a special meetingon July 21, 1945 to decide the fateof the shrine.
Kotohira Jinsha officiallyannounced the temporary closure of
the shrine and its activities on April6, 1946.