February 3
Nara on bean throwing day
I wrote this in two parts, so pardon me. First, the story, second, the photos with bits of story. The story's a bit long, so feel free to just scroll down for the photos and the basics of what went on.
Today was Japan's equivalent of Groundhog day. As the starting of spring on February 3rd, people are to throw beans from their door to the outside, to tell the demons (oni) to stay out of their house. Oni like to eat beans. You're also supposed to face a certain direction and eat a roll of sushi that hasn't been cut (thus you enjoy it like a banana). I think that one was invented by the sushi sellers, but I'm not sure.
Luckily it coincided with our internship with the railway, so we hopped the train to Nara to see all the events today.
We started with lunch on the 8th floor of some building. It was Chinese food (Japanese style, nothing like the real stuff apparently) in a private room, with just us five. Host, Hostess, three kids. We were on a corner, so we could see Toudaiji and Kofukuji (the pagoda) from where we sat. Our host took a moment to use the window as a map of where we'd be going that day. The food was cheap, the service slow, but food was good. Our host said something like "yeah, it's the cheapest room I could find..." but perhaps he was being sarcastic.
Nigatsudo
First on the list was Nigatsudo temple, nigatsu being February. It's right next to the Sangatsudo temple - you know, March. We handed our bags over to our hostess and then our host took us into the crowd waiting at the foot of the temple. He warned us that some of the old ladies were rather full of life, and that we best be careful. They even had the police out, dispersed throughout the crowd.
Boy was he ever right. See, we were all standing on a hill sloping down from the temple, and from the balcony above they were throwing goodies - bags of peanuts, other snacks, bouncy balls, and bells. The bells hurt when they hit you. Once something comes to your area, everyone jumps and grabs at it. On a hill. Oh, we're smart. He was right though, because it was these older ladies with the grabby fingers. They weren't good catches, but then chased things along the ground when they fell. Hell, I didn't even see the bells that hit the ground, snatched so fast.
So I didn't catch a thing. I was hit by a bell and something else. The lady in front of me cleaned up, stuffing all her catchings into her purse. Our host luckily cleaned up as well, catching five things or so. He had two within the first minute. He gave me peanuts.
Toudaiji
Next we took a bit of a detour to Toudaiji's storage house, before heading off to Toudaiji itself. I've been to Toudaiji before, but this was different. We met some higher-ups from the company, then headed in. We didn't have to pay, and a nice young monk guided us through and explained everything to us. He was really sweet. He explained how the tiles leading up to the temple were of different stones to represent India (grey), China (pink) and some other place (regular colour). And he covered the surrounding buildings (training grounds?) as well as the big thing with carvings of music being played on it. That was 1200 years old. Every other sentence had "1200 years ago..." in it.
Then we entered the temple. Yeah, I've been there before, but not like this. Our guide explained stuff. We saw the models of what the temple used to look like before it was rebuilt. He was enormously kind. He insisted we send our Chinese student through the nose hole in the bottom of a pole. We did. He mentioned that the gift shop in the corner was probably not part of the original design. Then he brought us to put on slippers and go up onto the Buddha's platform and hang with him.
And so we did. The higher-up from the company, an older guy but not ancient, said it was his first time up there. I felt rather honoured to not only go up but to get a guide as well. He pointed out the texts on the petals below Buddha, the pictures, and the gold mixed in with the bronze.
On the way out, regarding we north americans refraining from going through the nose hole, he mentioned something regarding Japanese men vs. Western men and whether or not it's a good thing to be able to actually fit through that hole, but I rather forget the point. Something about being big. Or skinny. It was totally interesting, of course.
Aaaand we left.
Deer, Deer, everywhere
Nara is famous for its deer. We all know this. They're mostly tame. One was waiting at the exit of Toudaiji, accepting pats from we passersby. Their droppings are everywhere. And the deer are just so, so very cute.
On the pathway out, they are at their worst. There's people selling deer cookies, which taste like triscuits but are flat, round, and not salty and not terribly interesting to humans. I did try one though, not bad. I could eat them, you know, with good cheese. The deer love these snacks. Our new host, the first host's partner (we'll call the new one glasses-man), bought a whole back of these things wrapped in their little papers and gave them to us kids. I just said "that's dangerous! no! don't give them to me!" but he grinned and handed them over.
The deer started. As I struggled to open the paper binding the cookies, the deer advance and surrounded me. They gave helpful nips of encouragement. One bit my leather jacket. Another bit my bottom. Some nudged me with their heads, some gave friendly butts. I fed the one who bit my bottom immediately after, incidentally. They don't really bite, but it's surprising. No manners, those deer!
They also don't fetch. I dropped a few cookies not wanting to lose fingers to the cute little buggers. I wanted to place one on a deer's head, but didn't. Or its back. Somewhere other than its mouth. Once I was all out, I just had the paper in my hand. The deer kept on and on, gimme gimme gimme. I saw Glasses-man give his deer his paper, so I did the same, then showed them all empty hands. Yay, win.
Then I laughed at other people getting mauled by deer.
Lanterns at Kasuga
I didn't take photos here. There's only one of us three kids, somewhere. We went and there was some ceremony where the guy said stuff .. oh right, we left the higher-ups behind at Toudaiji, and picked up the some new older fellows. Gosh, I can't even remember which was which now. Combover and Tallman were the new ones. So all together we observed the ceremony, had wind passed over us, all that stuff. We received our stubby candles in copper pipe holders, then went and waited with the lanterns while other people started to arrive, candles in hand. Eventually they said "go!" (no, not really) and everyone went up and threw money into the bedsheets and prayed, lit their candles, handed them off to the boyscouts to stick into lanterns. I handed mine to a girlscout, with Tallman's help. He was cool.
Then Tallman abandoned us, as did our Hostess, and we headed with Combover and Glasses-man to the amezake. It's sweet sake, still full of rice bits. The priestesses served us. They also ran various other booths, selling shrine stuff. The amezake was served with ginger in it, really delicious but was too hot to drink as fast as was needed to run off to the next event.
The fellows led us down toward the next location, and we rain into Tawain-ryo! I never remember his name but he's from Taiwan and very friendly. I saw him yesterday while I waited for the opposing train, and he waved profusely. I did the same. I don't know why he was wearing a suit and tie.
Demon Dinner
We went to some old building to eat hot amezake soup and rice with mushrooms and stuff stuck in it (cold). I didn't know it was important at all, but after dinner they brought out some fake torches for the three little boys (like 8 years old) to play with. They chased one of the men around a table, and then practiced their demon roars.
We went and waited in a room with a heater while everyone else got changed for the coming ceremony, including Glasses-man (who wore a happi-coat). There was an enormously excited air. As we left the building, we saw everyone had their festival clothes on. The important people (whom we had all unknowingly dined with) put on their blue shoulders, even Miss Nara. She was also throwing stuff at us at Nigatsu. The torch-bearers wore white. The happi-men did whatever, I forget. I also saw one of the future demons, mask above his head in wait, waiting outside there.
Kofukuji
We followed the path of people to Kofukuji, then broke off and entered with the festival folk through the back. Behind all the statues and the Buddha were empty cardboard boxes, so it'd be safe to assume people don't go back there much. There was some dragonish painting on bumpy stuff. What I noticed first, though, were the shadows all the statues cast on the white walls. Well formed statues make well formed shadows. I thought perhaps they had something to do with why we were there. I am not good at guessing.
We went and sat on the sidelines while the monks began the ceremony with monotones. They broke into chanting later, but would go back to tones (changing them up a bit) occasionally. There was a beautiful smell of incense, like, the real stuff. The monk closest to us had a big voice and did some monotone solos. We could hear people excited outside but couldn't see them. Then we went and sat outside the duck-gate at the front of the inside of the temple (front right corner, facing out from the inside).
I watched enthralled, eyeing the statues carefully. The Chinese student slept, her little mouth partly open. She had a quiet snore. The statues were two or three buddhas (a big one in the middle). Probably just the middle was actually Buddha. Then on the sides were warrior statues - totally freaking awesome. These were the ones with the cool statues. I just love the way their clothes flow in the bronze, the wind in the poses.
One statue was kinda scary, though. He was seated like Buddha, with his fingers in the classic middle finger downish pose, one hand down, one up, or something. His name is Yuima Koji. He looked like a mummified corpse. He even had a black nose, as though he'd been stuck in the frost. Here's a photo. Imagine him from the side, 20 feet away, in candlelight.
In the back, the demons (three) and demon children (three) were getting ready. The old man in the white friendly mask (who came out after the demons, but before the throwing of stuff) came and sat in front of us. He was chatting through the chanting! He was complaining about his orange hat being too big, so he went to get a safety pin (then showed it off). One of the demons, the blue one, stood beside the warrior statues and joined in on the chanting.
I could see my breath, but it was way warmer in there than outside.
Once the chanting finally finished, we followed a bunch of people out onto the stage in front. We stood off to the side while things took place. Soon after, the demons came running out. The children brandished their fake torches (lit up with red lights), while the adults brandished a black bamboo pole, an axe, and something else. They did their whole scary thing, then the happi-men started bringing up the torches we had lit back at the dining hall. They then took the torches, scared them around, and whacked embers off them onto the stage with their weapons. Once a torch went out, the happi-men replaced it. They danced all about.
While this was taking place, inside the building the taiko drum was going, while another man kept time with it with the bell. Whenever the bell struck (same time as the drum), the lights would wither go on or off. All the temple's lanterns in the front there flashed off and on with the beat. I stood at triangle with the demons and the drum. Whaa. Scary.
Then again, I had seen the demon's true faces backstage. And the old mask man. Way cool.
Behind us on the stage (I leaned against some pillar), there were all the goodies to be thrown to the crowd after. White balls in boxes, then boxes with packets of beans? and red-orange balls. The balls were stamped with a happy kanji. The beans are happy beans. Some folks had come onto the stage from the side to watch, mainly a few moms with kids.
One of the men (white cloak, black tall hat?) came out and handed me paper discs (fat football shape), like the ones the monks had thrown toward the offerings. The offerings before Buddha and his friends included regular old apples, orange, that stuff - but also packaged vegetables. Maybe they were pickled? Packaged something. I hoped to see Pocky, but there was none.
Unfortunately, the Chinese student had an engagement, so we all made to leave. I don't usually complain, but I really wanted to stay where I was! Once we were through the duck-gate, past the taiko and bell, the empty boxes, and out the back door, back gate, the Chinese girl asked me if I had wanted to stay and watch. I said yeah, I did, so after making sure we could make it to the station on our own, she and Combover went off and left me and the other student. ... who abandoned me in favour of the toilet, but then I was free.
So I went and joined the audience, which had a whole bunch of foreigners hanging around the back (nearly all male). I watched Old-friendly-mask do his thing, but didn't get a good photo. I got in on it once the blue shoulders (important folk) started throwing stuff. I had a few misses, but I did make one catch.
There was a white ball, which somehow my hand went for. I missed or bounced or something, and it bounced onto an older lady (like 50) that also had gone for it. I made my close as it was on her shoulder, and we shared a smile (hers hopeful I'd just drop it into her hands, methinks), and there it was. I won. Ha.
She then moved forward in the crowd saying something about how tall people are getting all the goodies. A bunch of the foreigner guys made some good catches too, of course. All I could think of, though, was:
Right, so I went back to the station with a huge smile on my face. I asked a rickshaw-man which way to Kintetsu, and he explained it to me using "walky walky walky" to explain "go straight". I asked him in Japanese and everything, but it was cute. Oh, that was really cute.
I made it to Kintetsu, and thought it'd be easy, you know, like JR! Nah. Not so much. I went down to the Kyoto/Namba lines, and looked about. Some foreigner guy - fresh off the boat, seriously - was trying to ask one of the drivers if he'd have enough time before the super express left to go get a new ticket, since he had some wrong one. I considered stopping to help, and at least tell him he could buy a ticket for a buck fifty and go to Nagoya, 2+ hours away, but refrained. I could've said, hey, pay when you get there, buddy, but I didn't. Maybe if it was a young lady.
I pulled out my handy dandy planner and figured out how to get to my station. I caught the train to Namba, got off at Saidaiji (Toudaiji's twin). I figured, for some reason, there'd be two stops after Saidaiji - Shin-Housono, and Shin-Tanabe. Since it was the express, we only stopped at important places like those. Well, we either stopped somewhere else or slowed down incredibly, because I figured I was at Shin-Tanabe by the time we hit Shin-Housono. I looked out the window, didn't see any station signs, but saw one advertising something for Tanabe, so I felt it was safe to not only get off but send the email to my host mom saying I was already walking from Shin-Tanabe to Kyou-Tanabe.
See, I had misheard the announcement too. He said "This is Shin-Housono. Next up is Shin-Tanabe" and I heard it as "This is Shin-Housono. I mean we'll be at Shin-Tanabe any minute. Like now. Get off."
The train doors slammed crap!, then the wheels squeaked sssuckerrrr as it rolled away.
The station across the way looked mighty familiar. At the Tanabe's, you can't see one while at the other. But you can at Housono. I saw my old bus stop, and the bike pit. I saw the sign saying Shin-Housono. I cursed under my breath and went to the waiting room. I put my bag down, kept my hand on it, stood there for bit, angry, before I figured out nearly all the seats were open, and the next train would be a little while yet. I emailed my host mom back by the time I boarded the local (every bloody stop), saying I was mixed up and riding the normal train. She said she'd visit the toilet at the station while she waited. That's when it became funny again.
So I explained how I got off and sent the mail as I stepped out the door. She told me that the student last year got lost a lot too, which is always good to hear. And she laughed. When we got in, she told the Grandmother right away. Gotta love that.
My dinner was mainly sushi - four cut rolls, one uncut, and inari-zushi too, then a croquette, and something I just can't explain. It's got texture like dessert tofu, tastes like eggs or something, is served hot, and stuck inside this gelatinous beige are various vegetables and sometimes meat chunks.
I then ate my 20 beans - because I'm 20 - and sat down to watch Wind Valley's Naushika, a Miyazaki film from 1984 (obvious by the music). That's the guy who did Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away, remember?
Okay that's all. Boy this is long. I'll stick together photos later. I uploaded a fistfull but I can't explain things at 10 to 4 in the morning.
Photos
First we went to Nigatsudo.
First view from the lower right. Nobody but camera men up top, yet.
Policeman! From where I stood for this thing.
These are the people that threw things (in purple with black hats). The fellow second from left has on blue, it sticks way out at his shoulders. That's what the people throwing stuff at Kofukuji later on all wore.
That's Toudaiji in the distance. View from up top in the temple, when we went up after the throwing was done.
The temple is famous for its lanterns, so I hear.
Next we went to Toudaiji.
Approaching Toudaiji coming from Nigatsudo.
Daibutsu (Big Buddha) and his right hand man. I don't know who it is, supposedly it's hard to explain. Note how the ceiling is prettily painted in red and white. It's really far up there, and all.
Daibutsu with his left hand man. Note the heads in the left hand corner. Those people are up on the platform on which Daibutsu is sitting. We went up there after.
There's also two warriors in the corners behind the left and right hand men. This is behind the right hand man. From Daibutsu's standpoint, the front left corner is a gift shop.
There's a famous hole in the bottom of a pole to Daibutsu's left back. I didn't want to try and get stuck. Our friend was urged to go through, and it was a breeze for her. It's called Daibutsu's Nostril, though I think it's larger than his actual nostrils (37cm or so, the real ones, if I remember right)
Next, we were attacked by deer.
Some lady making fast friends with the deer. They know she has food.
Classic fed deer.
I love this photo. There was actually two deer doing this.
Taking time feeding the deer (fellow students). To the right there, man and woman, that's Glasses-man and Hostess. Under the umbrella is someone selling deer snacks.
Lastly, Kofukuji.
Unfortunately I have no photos from inside - it was AMAZING. So there. I'll draw pictures maybe.
Beginnings.
Saluting with weapons. Probably not really a salute, just what the photo looks like. Note the sword on the right, and black axe with grey blade over fur-neck's head, to the left there. Chances are the orange thing on sword's left shoulder is either fire in hand or the baby castella tent set up in the distance. I am thinking the latter, but hoping for the former.
The demon dance from where I stood on stage. Photos were difficult.
This is the photo my camera came out too late to catch. There's supposed to be a funny old man in a curvy white mask on the stage there. I was walking around from behind the temple to the front, after exiting and all that. Grah.
From below those lanterns there, white-yellow straight across, the blue-shoulders threw stuff.
It's pretty at night, isn't it. To the right when facing the temple.
End.