Yoshie Doi

December 1, 2024 Kyoto National Museum　December 1, 2024 Toyokuni Shrine

December 1, 2024 Wakamiya Hachiman Shrine Fire Festival

December 1, 2024 December　Wakamiya Hachimangu Shrine courtyard

Tangerines, fire-burned manju, and okoshi

Ginkgo trees along Horikawa Imadegawa　December 4, 2024

　　I took a walk from Shichijo to Gojo to participate in the fire festival at Wakamiya Shrine on Gojozaka. The autumn leaves at the Kyoto National Museum were beautiful, and the ginkgo trees were shining gold, so I couldn’t help but stop and take a photo, then two.

　The Wakamiya Hachiman Shrine Fire Festival, which starts at 4pm, is held every year in December. It’s especially during the cold season that we appreciate the value of fire, and we were given fire-fired manju, roasted mandarin oranges, and okoshi rice crackers. It’s the same three items every year.

　It is said that eating roasted mandarins will keep we from catching a cold. The fire-burning manju has a flame jewel branded on it, and the red and white manju is filled with smooth and mashed bean paste, and the okoshi is made from newly-wed rice and shaped like a triangle to represent fire. As a sign of gratitude to fire, we always receive this three-piece set as a gift from a religious ceremony.

　Also, the autumn leaves that I look forward to every year are beautiful along the ginkgo tree-lined street north of Imadegawa on Horikawa-dori. You can enjoy the view while riding the bus.

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Translated by Masami Otani

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