🐰🎑MOON MORSELS🥮🥰
When the Harvest Moon (お月見) and Feast of Chrysanthemums (菊の節句) arrive together, you know plates will be groaning and bellies will be full🙌
one for the dog
one for the crow...
rice cakes
犬の餅烏が餅もつかれけり
-Issa (小林一茶).
Trans. Lanoue. #京都
Nao-san tucks in to Kameya Yoshinaga's (亀屋良長 @yoshimura0303) 'hane-usagi' (はねうさぎ).
Break open the cute moon rabbit and add hot water to create delicious oshiruko (お汁粉), a sweet bean soup.
Each rabbit comes with a random kohaku (琥珀) moon. The phase of the moon-sweet determines your fortune...a full moon represents the best luck you can have.
Nao-san got...🥁...a full moon!🎉
A thread all about kohaku and other types of sweets⬇️
We are well in to September, but Kyōto's afternoons are still scorching. Even statues are in need of a little refreshment.
Worshippers pour water on Mizukake Fudō-san (水掛不動) as a form of prayer. He sits on an orange rock known as "Kankō's Bench" (菅公腰掛石). #仁和寺#Kyoto
Kankō is another name for Sugawara-no-Michizane (菅原 道真 845-903). Shortly before leaving for his demoted post at Dazaifu, Michizane visited Ninna-ji to bid his friend retired Emperor Uda (宇多天皇) farewell. As the emperor was busy reading sutras, he waited on the rock. #京都
🌺THE QUEST FOR ETERNAL YOUTH💦
Chrysanthemum dew was believed to have age-reversing qualities, and from the end of the 9thC the aristocracy would drape floss-silk on the flowers before Chōyō-no-Sekku. The next morning the damp and fragrant cloth was gently wiped on faces. #Japan
Many sweets around the time of 'The Feast of Chrysanthemums' (菊の節句) are named after the silk floss used to collect dew from the flowers.
Suetomi's (末富) 'kisewata' (着せ綿 'cotton covering') is one such sweet, depicting cotton draped on the head of a pink chrysanthemum.
Senbon Tamajuken (千本玉壽軒) makes use of kudzu to give their 'kisewata' (着せ綿) a glistening beauty, highlighting the dew so coveted by the folk at court.
Nao-san paired the sweet with a crane tea bowl. Like chrysanthemums, cranes have long been a symbol of longevity. #Japan
As the day draws on the (already) waxing moon makes its first appearance, and so a small celebration with Suetomi's (末富) 'getto' (月兎). The yellow lower layer, made from Japanese yam, represents the full moon.
Potatoes & yams are important symbols of harvest time and autumn🍠
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🤕SCARS OF HISTORY⚔️
Every now and then, when wandering around the city, you can actually see historical moments captured in time.
A good example of this are the sword marks on Sanjō Bridge's balustrade caps. These were from the 'Noticeboard Incident' of September 12th 1866.
In the summer of 1866 an official signboard was erected by Sanjō Bridge, calling Chōshū Domain (長州藩) an enemy of the imperial court.
On September 10th, after anti-shōgunate rebels tore the sign down for a second time, the government ordered the Shinsengumi to guard the bridge.
At midnight on September 12th (October 20th - modern calendar), 8 men from Tosa Domain (土佐藩) arrived to destroy the noticeboard but were surprised by 34 Shinsengumi soldiers!
The Tosa ringleader, Fujisaki Kichigorō (藤崎吉五郎 1845-66), was killed, but 5 of his men escaped.
Just beside our Camellia Garden teahouse runs Kinukake-no-michi (きぬかけの路 the 'Silk-draped Path'), a 2km stretch of road that joins the UNESCO World Heritage sites of Kinkaku-ji (金閣寺 The Golden Pavilion), Ryōan-ji (龍安寺) and Ninnai-ji (仁和寺).
An iconic golden pavilion (restored after a novice burnt the original down in 1950), the world's most famous Zen garden, & a former imperial palace are just some of the most well-known attractions to be enjoyed along Kinukake-no-michi.
But always venture off the beaten track!😉
But what does the road have to do with draped silk?
Well, Kinukake-no-michi (きぬかけの路) winds through the foothills of Mt. Kinugasa (衣笠山), known also as Mt. Kinukake (絹笠山).
The mountain is named after an incident involving Emperor Uda (宇多天皇). #Kyoto#Japan#衣笠山
In its traditional form, mitarashi dango is made up of 5 small rice dumplings...skewered, grilled, and served with a sweet soy sauce glaze.
Legend has it that the inspiration for the snack came from a miraculous incident involving Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 1288-1339). #Japan
During one of Go-Daigo's outings to Shimogamo-jinja, 5 bubbles appeared in the water as he purified his hands.
Interpreted as the human body (五体 - head, arms and legs), it was taken as a fortuitous sign.
The emperor offered 5 rice dumplings (4 big & 1 small) to the shrine gods.
👣🗾SCATTERING EARTH🤏⛰️
For 25 years Kurita Kōichi (栗田宏一) has walked the length and breadth of Japan, gathering small samples of soil from each settlement (whether hamlet, village, town or city) he passes through.
At Hōnen-in (法然院) he made a dedication of his life's work.
Kurita's dedication was inspired by the temple's 'sange' (散華), a ritual offering of flowers made early each morning. 25 flowers (usually camellia) are dedicated to a statue of Amida. The flowers represent the 25 bodhisattva who help Amida take the souls of the dead to paradise.
Hōnen-in is no stranger to using earth and sand as a form of offering.
Upon entering the temple visitors pass through the 'Byakusadan' (白砂壇), 2 terraces of white sand (roughly 7m long, 3m wide and 10cm high).
Said to symbolize water, the sand purifies the body and soul. #京都