Goshuin （御朱印）

A goshuin book

Probably like many other visitors to Japan, I love visiting temples and shrines. The architecture is stunning, the peacefulness of the grounds, the occasional siting of a monk or the distant sound of a large bell ringing into the air...all of it creates spectacular pockets of serenity in places in Japan that could, otherwise, simply be busy, overcrowded, and aesthetically boring.

You can find temples and shrines located in random places all over Japan. I've found the red gate entrance to a shrine tucked in shopping alleyways or standing alone in a rice field. They are everywhere.


First, it might be a good idea to mention the difference between a shrine and a temple. I'm by no means an expert, but this is what I have come to understand.

The entrance to a temple

A Temple: They usually have a large gate that appears to look more like a building than an entranceway. Temples are Buddhist holy sites, and you will find monks with their obligatory shaved heads and long robes at these temples. There is usually a statue of Buddhas and bodhishatvas somewhere in the temple grounds as well.

The entrance to a shrine

A Shrine: These are easily spotted because they have (usually) a red, simple, gate called a torii gate, which is two vertical poles supporting two horizontal poles, at the entrance. Shrines are Shinto holy sites, and you will find priests and priestesses wearing white robes with red pants here. Many shrines are dedicated to certain aspects of life, such as helping you pass college entrance exams, give birth safely, or just commute safely to work.




Despite the fact that temples and shrines are religious sites to two completely different religions, Japan doesn't seem concerned about it, and you will often find temples and shrines coexisting next to one another to the point where you need to ask the nearest person working there whether you're still in the shrine or if you're in the temple.



I like both temples and shrines, and every time I visit one, I try to buy a momento of some sort from each place the way people buy little tokens from the great cathedrals in Europe, I suppose.

The problem is that I haven't had a great deal of luck in finding a good momento. I used to collect little embroidery pouches that contain a good luck charm inside (called "omamori"). These charms are Japan's version of the four-leaf clover that you can carry around with you, but they are more specific. One charm can give you good luck in love; another in health or wealth.

I used to love collecting omamori because the name of the shrine or temple was usually embroidered on the back of the pouch.

The problem, however, is that I learned you should return the omamori after a year of having it. I learned that shrines and temple are like libraries, and the omamori are like books. You can only borrow the omamori, but you have to return it after a year or else you're depriving someone else of that "book."



So that took care of that.

Other than omamori, temples and shrines don't really have anything that you can collect, like postcards or keychains or anything like that (some of the major ones do, however). You can get your fortune on a piece of paper, but even those are often left at the temple or shrine, tied to a rope because the receiver didn't like the fortune they got.

For a long while I had to just be satisfied with the pictures I took.



Then, one day at a World Heritage Site temple in Nikko, I spotted an old woman handing a little hard-cover book over to a monk who was manning the sales of omamori there. I watched as the monk took the book, flipped it open to an entirely blank page, took out a calligraphy brush, and began writing kanji on the blank page.

A monk writing kanji

Upon jabbing my (now) husband repeatedly and dragging him closer to the monk writing the kanji, my husband explained to me that the old woman had handed over what is called a "goshuin."

A goshuin, I have learned, is like a passport. When you visit a relatively large temple or shrine, you can get the name of the place written in a blank page of your "passport", followed by the date you were there. They are supposed to be used for more meaningful purposes than just satisfying my shallow need to collect something from places I've been to, but I knew I had to have one.


So, for around 2,000 yen, I bought the hard-cover book at the Nikko temple and had the monk write in mine. The kanji is stunningly beautiful.



I haven't looked back since.

Every time I go anywhere that I think might have a nice temple or shrine, I make sure to take that little hard-cover book with me. I've got entries from temples and shrines ranging from Kamakura to Aomori. My dream is to one day go back to Kyoto and just go crazy collecting them.

The inside of a goshuin book

If you want to do this, here's how:
1.First, you need to learn how to say the word properly. It is pronounced: "Goh-shu-een", with the emphasis on the second syllable.

2. Next, you need the hard-cover book. These are usually available at the major temples and shrines in Japan, so first you need to go to a huge tourist destination shrine or temple and get one for around 2,000 yen. Just ask at any of the gift shops by saying, "Goshuin?" and look hopeful. Sometimes the hard-cover books are on display, so point at it.

3. Next, I highly recommend you make your life easier by trying to memorize what the kanji for "goshuin" looks like, because if the shrine or temple offers it, you will see signs for it near the entrance, or at the places selling the omamori. The kanji is 御朱印. Do whatever you can to memorize this.

4. If you have no aptitude for memorizing kanji, then you'll have to ask the people manning the places selling the omamori and other items. Show them your hard-cover book, and say "goshuin?" with a hopeful look on your face. Hopefully, they will point you to where you can get it done if you aren't in the right place.

5. If you're at the right place, or if you have memorized the kanji and have found the right place, then open the hard-cover book to a blank page and say, "Goshuin kudasai." (kudasai is pronounced: kuu-dah-si, with the emphasis on the first syllable and the last "i" being a hard "i" like in "ice.")

6. Wait as the person there writes in the book. It's not always a monk or a priest, just to warn you. I've had old ladies working at the temple or shrine randomly do it. Also, at some of the busier temples or shrines, you will be given a number while your book is set down in a line of other books, in which case just wait around that general area as best you can (depending on how busy it is) and wait to get your book back. It can take a few minutes for the person there to get to your book.

7. Get your book back and pay the standard fee of 300 yen. Say thank you by saying, "Arigatougozaimasu" (Ah-ree-gah-toh-goh-za-ee-mahs).



And voila, you have yourself a truly fantastic passport collection.

The Foreigners

At the science museum in Odaiba, Tokyo

It's been too long since I've written in here. Sorry about that.

Today, I'd like to write about the types of foreigners who come to live in Japan for a few months or more. I have found that, during my time of being here, they kind of break down neatly into a few categories.

(Note: Of course these types don't categorize absolutely everyone. Some people are also a mash-up of these types.)


The Players: These are foreigners who come to Japan on a sort of mental vacation from their lives back home. They think they can do whatever they want in Japan with little consequence because Japanese people don't outright express their displeasure, allowing these foreigners to trash things, not pay taxes, annoy their neighbors, and generally make the lives of anyone near them miserable. They then skip merrily back to their country as if they've just spent a nice, long vacation in Vegas.
            Their impact: It is because of these types of foreigners that many Japanese people distrust and outright hate foreigners. Japanese people have come to equate foreigners with horrible people thanks to these foreigners. Thanks to these foreigners, the rest of us have to suffer. A lot.



The Explorers: These are foreigners who come to Japan because it happens to be located far away from home, and it's in Asia, the area of the globe that houses so many other exotic locations. These are foreigners who come here to eat the raw squid just to say they did; the foreigners who like to brag about the knife fight they were in while traveling around a nearby Asian country, and the foreigners who disapprove of Japan for being "too tame."
          Their impact: Thanks to these foreigners, some Japanese people have come to believe that not all foreigner people are bad; some will actually eat their food. I happen to love talking to these types of foreigners because they usually have some interesting stories to share.



The Geeks: These are the most prevalent type of foreigners in Japan. These are the foreigners who watched a ton of anime in their home country, fell under the impression that Japan is just like what it is in the anime they watched or comic books they read, and come here full of dreams of a utopia here on Earth. They wander a section of Tokyo called Akihabara in awe. The problem is that they then realize that even in Japan, geeks are part of the fringe society that isn't well thought of, and they feel as alienated as they did back home. They usually go home disappointed and disillusioned.
          Their impact: They can be annoying when they first land in Japan. These are usually the geeks who devoted years of their lives to studying the most useless parts of the Japanese language, and they love to show off their Japanese skills at every moment possible to anyone who is nearby to listen. It has all the feel of your relatives forcing you to sit through home movies.



The Soul-Searchers: These are foreigners who come to live in Japan because they feel lost at home, and they hope that a change of scenery will help them find their way again. They're the ones who tend to fall into Buddhism or Shintoism while they're here.
           Their impact: These are my favorite type of foreigners living in Japan, because they tend to be open-minded and tolerant of the differences in culture. They seem the most reflective of the types, and the most agreeable to hang out with. If you want to go try something crazy, these people will go with you.



The Opportunists: These are the foreigners who see job opportunities in Japan and decide that, with the economy being terrible at home, they could stand a few years abroad to save up some money, then take that money back home with them.
          Their impact: These are the foreigners who really, really didn't think things through when they came here, and they tend to suffer the most for it. It is no small thing to leave everything you know and go live in a place that happens to believe their way of life is correct and yours is not, and money doesn't provide enough of an incentive to stay here and continue suffering the culture shock that crashes down on you like a building collapsing. Right before they go home, these foreigners openly express their hatred of Japan and all things Japanese to any foreigner within earshot, effectively spreading their little rain cloud around to anyone unfortunate enough to be nearby.



The Roots-Searchers: These are foreigners who have at least some trace of Japanese heritage in them, and they came to Japan to learn more about that.
          Their impact: I also love hanging out with these people because they tend to be kind, tolerant and open-minded about Japanese culture along with being as shocked as the other foreigners by aspects of the culture. Sometimes they hold a superior attitude to other foreigners, but many times they seem frustrated by either being too accepted by Japanese people or not accepted enough, depending on just how much Japanese blood runs in them and how good their Japanese is.



The Randomists: These are foreigners who came to live in Japan on a whim. Maybe they just happened to study Japanese in college because it was the only class open; maybe they just pointed on a map with their eyes closed, and their finger fell on Japan. They seem unimpressed by just about everything.
            Their impact: They can be fun to be around, but any awe you may find about something will probably fall flat on them. If they didn't care enough to think through living in Japan in great detail, then they won't be bothered to think about much of anything too deeply.