A man walked through the ring of thatch stood on the approach to Hirakawa Tenmangu Shrine

Man passing through the thatch ring at Hirakawa Tenmangu Shrine

I was a little puzzled when I saw the thatch ring placed in Hirakawa Tenmangu Shrine at the beginning of the year, because I thought that the thatch rings are placed in the precincts of shrines at the end of June when the "Nagoshi-no-harae" ritual is held and at the end of December when the "Toshikoshi-no-harae" ritual is held. I guessed that ring had been set up during the "Toshikoshi-no-harae" held at the end of the year and was still there at the beginning of the year.

The thatch ring placed in the middle of the approach looked like a security gate for approaching the shrine. It reminded me of the security gate at the airport. It seemed to say that since the shrine is purified, worshippers must also go through the thatch ring to remove their impurities before approaching the shrine.

There was no reason to oppose the removal of impurities. I also went through the thatch ring before joining my hands together at the shrine. I was sure that I would be able to get rid of the sickness and impurities that had accumulated over the past six months and spend the next six months safely. I was a little curious about the fact that the sins and impurities removed by going through the thatch ring are said to be from the past six months. The impurities from more than six months ago are so embedded that they cannot be removed by going through the thatch ring.

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