Asakusa is one of the older sections of Tokyo, and walking through the
side streets is, according to a few people, like seeing what Tokyo might
have been like a hundred years ago. I've been there a couple of times,
to see the temple there, which is really huge. Sensoji Temple, also called
Asakusa-Kannon, is a gigantic temple housing a statue of Kannon, Goddess
of Mercy, which was found in the sea some distance away and made people
sick until it was brought here, where it now heals people. A lot of people
come to the incense burner at the center of the temple entry to wash the
smoke over themselves and pray for health. The front gate is huge, and
leads into a shopping street crammed with small shops selling all kinds
of souvenirs.
The front gate of the temple is pretty impressive - flanked on
either side by the god of fire and the god of wind.
Once through the gate, and under the huge lantern in the middle,
which apparently weighs a few hundred pounds, you are looking at the central
building of the temple, which houses the statue of Kannon and where you
can also get fortunes in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
You get a stick with a kanji number on it from a big steel drum,
find the drawer with your number on it, and pull out a copy of your fortune.
Mine said: "The cloudy sky will get more and more clear and the moon will
appear. The linen robe turns into a green one. What you've been troubled
for a long time will soon begin to fade away. Your virtue and happiness
will reveal themselves." . . . Well, nobody said these things were
supposed to be clear. If you don't like your fortune, you can leave it
tied to a wire or tree branch and avoid it that way. If you like it, take
it with you.
On the left, the "five-tiered pagoda" behind which is the secret
garden I have yet to actually get into. You have to apply to get in, very
few people know it's there, and when I tried the garden was closed for
the day. On the right, the view from the doorway to the secret garden,
looking back at the main building of the temple.
In the temple Carolyn and I were stopped by this group of high
school girls, who asked us where we were from and asked if they could take
a picture with us. They all lined up and then realized they had to decide
who would take the picture and therefore not be in it. Luckily, their teacher
showed up and took the shot for us. I couldn't resist and asked her to
take one on my camera too. . . I think the whole thing was some kind of
assignment for English class, but I'm not sure.
I just really liked this statue. The red kerchiefs are tied onto
a lot of statues in temples.
This is the side street on the other side of the shopping street,
going away from the temple.
On the way out of the temple, it started to rain and there was
this sudden deluge. The sky just opened, all the high school kids on their
school trips started to run, and we just stood around watching the rain,
getting soaked, and taking pictures. . .
