O-mikuji
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Votive talismans designed for the home |
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Ofuda, and Jingū taima when from Ise Jingu |
Votive paper slips applied to the gates of shrines |
Senjafuda |
Amulets sold at shrines for luck and protection |
Omamori |
Wooden plaques representing prayers and wishes |
Ema |
Paper fortunes received by making a small offering |
O-mikuji |
Stamps collected at shrines |
Shuin |
Omikuji (
The omikuji predicts the person's chances of their hopes coming true, of finding a good match, or generally matters of health, fortune, life, etc. When the prediction is bad, it is a custom to fold up the strip of paper and attach it to a pine tree or a wall of metal wires alongside other bad fortunes in the temple or shrine grounds. A purported reason for this custom is a pun on the word for pine tree (
A similar custom of writing a prayer on a specially-prepared wooden block called an ema, which is then tied to an ad hoc scaffold, also exists.
History
[edit]The omikuji sequence historically commonly used in Japanese Buddhist temples, consisting of one hundred prophetic five-character quatrains, is traditionally attributed to the Heian period Tendai monk Ryōgen (912–985), posthumously known as Jie Daishi (
Historically, however, the Japanese omikuji system is thought to have been modeled after the Chinese kau chim, a similar form of divination involving a tube full of bamboo sticks and a sequence of written or printed oracles. A wooden container containing oracular lots dated 1409 (Ōei 16) is preserved in Tendai-ji in Iwate Prefecture, suggesting that this method of fortune telling was imported to Japan somewhere before the Muromachi period (1336–1573).[5][6] The quatrains of the Ganzan Daishi Hyakusen are themselves ultimately based on a set of oracles dating from the Southern Song period (1127-1279) known as the Tiānzhú língqiān (
The Ganzan Daishi Hyakusen became popular in the Edo period due to the notable monk Tenkai (1536–1643), who is credited with attaching Ryōgen's name to it. A story related by one of Tenkai's disciples claims that Tenkai was once visited in a dream by Ryōgen, who revealed to him the existence of the 100 quatrains, which had been supposedly lost for centuries. Copies of these short poems were eventually discovered at Togakushi Shrine in Shinano Province (modern Nagano Prefecture) and widely disseminated. The Ganzan Daishi Hyakusen eventually became standard across many Buddhist temples (even those not affiliated with the Tendai school) and served as a model for other omikuji sequences. Various books explaining the meaning of the oracles were published during the period, suggesting their widespread popularity.[3][6][9]
Fortunes
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/O-mikuji_at_Hokkaido_Shrine_Tongu.jpg/220px-O-mikuji_at_Hokkaido_Shrine_Tongu.jpg)
The standard Ganzan Daishi Hyakusen sequence contains the following fortunes (from best to worst):
- Great blessing (
大吉 , dai-kichi) - Blessing (
吉 , kichi) - Small blessing (
小吉 , shō-kichi) - Half-blessing (
半 吉 , han-kichi) - Future blessing (
末吉 , sue-kichi) - Future small blessing (
末 小吉 , sue-shō-kichi) - Misfortune (
凶 , kyō)
Other sequences may include additional degrees such as "middle blessing" (
It then lists fortunes regarding specific aspects of one's life, which may include any number of the following among other possible combinations:
- hōgaku (
方角 ) – auspicious/inauspicious directions (see feng shui) - negaigoto (
願事 ) – one's wish or desire - machibito (
待人 ) – a person being waited for - usemono (
失 せ物 ) – lost article(s) - tabidachi (
旅立 ち) – travel - akinai (
商 い) – business dealings - gakumon (
学問 ) – studies or learning - sōba (
相場 ) – market speculation - arasoigoto (
争 事 ) – disputes - ren'ai (
恋愛 ) – romantic relationships - tenkyo (
転居 ) – moving or changing residence - shussan (
出産 ) – childbirth, delivery - byōki (
病気 ) – illness - endan (
縁談 ) – marriage proposal or engagement
Relation to fortune cookies
[edit]The random fortunes in fortune cookies may be derived from omikuji; this is claimed by Seiichi Kito of Fugetsu-Do,[10] and supported by evidence that American fortune cookies derive from 19th century Kyoto crackers called tsujiura senbei.[11]
Gallery
[edit]-
Young people in Osaka comparing omikuji on New Year's Eve
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An omikuji vending machine at Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū
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Pocket omikuji
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Decorative pocket omikuji
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Children drawing omikuji fortune sticks from a metal cylinder at Asakusa Temple (Sensoji) in Tokyo, Japan.
See also
[edit]- Futomani
- I Ching divination
- Itako
- Kokkuri
- Kau chim
- Jiaobei
- Omamori
- Onmyōdō
- Poe divination
- Tengenjutsu
References
[edit]- ^ Basic Terms of Shinto, Kokugakuin University, Institute for Japanese Culture and Classics, Tokyo 1984
- ^ "「おみくじ
発祥 の地 」が比叡山 延暦寺 に! 1,000年 以上 前 の形式 を今 なお残 す".伝教大師 最澄 1200年 魅力 交流 コミュニケーションサイト「いろり」 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-11-21. - ^ a b "おみくじの
起源 ".妙法寺 (蕪村 寺 )(Myōhō-ji (Busondera) Official Website). Retrieved 2021-11-21. - ^ Strickmann, Michel; Faure, Bernard (2005). Chinese Poetry and Prophecy: The Written Oracle in East Asia. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804743341.
- ^ "
観音 籤 及 び筒 ". いわての文化 情報 大 事典 (Glossary of Iwate's Cultural Information). Retrieved 2021-11-21. - ^ a b Maruyama, Shūichi. "おみくじ" (PDF).
仮説 実験 授業 研究 会 ・北海道 . Retrieved 2021-11-21. - ^ Hidaka, Iku (2020). "
南 宋 版 『天竺 霊 籤 』原本 再現 の試 み ─後 補 図 75番 を例 として─". Journal of the Society of Art and Design. 1. doi:10.34524/jsartdesign.1.0_3. - ^ Ōno, Izuru (2001-09-30). "おみくじと
天道 ―元 三 大師 御 銭 注解 考 ―" (PDF).日本 思想 史学 (Journal of Japanese Intellectual History). 33: 130. - ^ Ōta, Masahiro (November 2018). "「おみくじ」の
起源 と諸相 ".明治 聖徳 記念 学会 紀要 (Transactions of the Meiji Seitoku Kinen Gakkai). 55: 69–71. - ^ A History of Fugetsu-Do, www.fugetsu-do.com
- ^ Lee, Jennifer 8. (January 16, 2008). "Solving a Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery Inside a Cookie" "feb 24 2004 how to see your fortune the fortune cookie" The New York Times. Retrieved on January 16, 2008.
External links
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