shimenawa

I have so many small notes in my memory of little details of my travels, especially in Japan. This beautifully written passage from a very beatuful book sums up much of my experience "The washcloths were my first exposure to the attention to detail that characterises much of Japan-both visually and socially. I soon came to realise just how much thought lies behind appearances and actions there, and that these details of beauty and nuances of word and deed are both expected and appreciated". The book is called A year in Japan by Kate T Williamson isbn 1-56898-540-1, a collection of beautiful watercolours and notes about her year. The middle image is a drawing from the book - click on the image to see the beautiful detail and read the perfectly balanced passage. The top and bottom photos are of shimenawa, found at temples and over many doorways at new year and various other significant places, essentially they keep bad sprits away, but they are also an integral part of the design and image of sacred places. This shimenawa is also a lucky charm where you can stand underneath and throw a coin up into the straw and hope it gets lodged there. It is luck for marriage. More bizarrely, the shrine listed on this link is the exact same one as the photo I have included here. It is a significant shrine in Japan, located in the complete boondocks of Japan. Its just down the road a bit from the place that sells the latte art coffees.