In the temple for AOL

06/02/2002 English German

Edition # 40
San Francisco, 06-02-2002

Japan, Finally Aircraft as Arcade Tokyo Gastronomy Tokyo Fish Market Masks Beverages Beer Paper tissues Shuwattchi! Fashion Safety Technophilia Shinkansen Japanese speaking English Busy Bodies Rambunctious Youth Surveyed by Students Geishas Original and American knockoff Consumer Frenzy Japanese toilets Bicycles in Tokyo Train station in Tokyo Uniforms Taxis To Bow Shoes Off and Shoes On Hiroshima Ryokan Japanese Bath In the temple for AOL Koya-San Cemetery in Koya-San

In the temple for AOL

Michael The Shinto religion in Japan involves many rituals and amulets: If you throw a 5-yen coin into a designated box in the temple and clap your hands, it brings good luck in a requested area. You can also buy lucky or disaster-repelling charms: Illustration 1 shows one that you hang on the car's rearview mirror, which amusingly reads "For Against Disaster" in English. Of course, there are also amulets for passing exams or blessings for children.

Figure [1]: Amulet "For Protection Against Disaster

Another gimmick involves writing worries on special pieces of paper that completely dissolve and disappear when thrown into water, symbolizing the disappearance of those worries. My biggest concern at the moment is, of course, the low price of AOL stock, and I dutifully paid the 200 yen (1.70 euros) fee, filled out a piece of paper, and let it dissolve in the water. Since then, at least the stock price hasn't fallen any further!

Figure [2]: Shinto: Write down your worries ...

Figure [3]: ... and let dissolve in water.

By the way, do you see the flag in illustration 4 that shows a chapel? The mirrored swastika does not indicate a far-right party, but is actually the Buddhist symbol for "temple".