Omamori

[idhreniel]

One of my friends had a cellphone string thing that looked like two painted shellfish shell s pierced and hung together. According to her its a form of " Omamori", an amulet (in her case, "love " amulet) someone bought from their overseas trip to Japan at a Shinto Shine.And I saw similiar things in manga/anime and even featured on some SE asia Shopping sites.

Now.here comes my questions:



Can any one tell me if it is true that you would have to return the Omamori to the temple after one year?

Would the omamori bought thru the websites (ie, not having to go to the shine physcially to do the ritual or prayer...etc) considered effectived from a pure shinto point of view?

just wondering if it can be a gift for someone taking JLPT or entering Kendo competition..

[JonB]

Not heard about returning the charms but the temple sell charms for just about anything - exams, driving test, love etc etc

[DaveW]

That's a good question....

I think that the omamori is effective because a Shinto priest has written a 'prayer' on a piece of paper which is folded inside (this applies to the cloth omamori anyway). That being the case I don't think it matters where you buy it as long as it isn't a knockoff made in China somewhere... not that there's anything wrong with goods made in China, I just don't think Shinto is popular there Of course the ideal would be to go to the shrine in question and make an offering to the kami yourself.

As for returning the omamori to the temple every year, I think that has more to do with efficacy. I suppose the argument would be that the power of the omamori diminishes over time and has to be replaced.

Hope that helps.

P.S. there are omamori specifically for martial arts and for tests. For kendo you might want to try the Kashima or Katori grand shrine. Exams are a major concern for Japanese students (and parents) and I assume you can get one anywhere.

[markystar]

yeah after the new year, the shrine burns all the old ones

[gerald_ford]

Can any one tell me if it is true that you would have to return the Omamori to the temple after one year?

Would the omamori bought thru the websites (ie, not having to go to the shine physcially to do the ritual or prayer...etc) considered effectived from a pure shinto point of view?

just wondering if it can be a gift for someone taking JLPT or entering Kendo competition..

My wife gets omamori from her parents in Japan pretty regularly, and yes, we have to send them back after about a year so that the priests can burned the charms. I am not sure why they have to do this after year, but it seems to be a pretty universal thing in Shinto. As for efficacy, I couldn't say. There does seem to be some bearing on where the charm came from (i.e. what shrine) and how lucky it might be, but I don't know.

They do make nice little gifts, and Japanese do give them to one another, so by all means, please feel free to share them with friends and such.

[john10074]

Do you guys know anybody who does have some sort of teaching certification and experience? I'm currently doing CELTA in London, and plan to do another teaching certification afterwards, and hopefully get some experience teaching for 12-18 months. After that, I really like the idea of going abroad, and Japan seems like the natural choice since I'll probably be able to pass JLPT1 by then (hopefully).Rather than being shipped around and tied down to one of these companies you hear so many horror stories about, I was hoping to give myself an edge so I could apply like a normal citizen wherever I choose to end up (probably Tokyo or Osaka, I guess). I think my chances would be really good just about anywhere else, but the system in Japan seems really questionable, so it makes me wonder


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