8
SENSOJI TEMPLE
Once we finished our yummy dorayaki, we walked past the shops to the end of the street. There was another gate but it was even bigger than the first one we had passed under.
“Wowee zowee,” I said, craning my neck to look up at it. This one was two stories tall! It also had a giant red lantern hanging from the entryway.
“This is the Hozomon,” Mom said. “This gate leads into the main grounds of the temple.”
As we passed under it, I looked up.
“Dragons!” I shouted.
“Ooh,” Sophie said. “That’s so awesome.”
Dad looked at his phone. “This area used to be prone to fires, so the dragons were carved into the bottom of the lantern to protect the temple.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “That doesn’t make sense. Don’t they breathe fire?”
“You’re thinking of European dragons,” Mom said. “Asian dragons are considered to be water deities. So they would protect against fire.”
“Wowee zowee!”
We walked over to a big statue of a man with a dragon perched on his shoulders. He held a closed umbrella like a cane. I guess in case the dragon started spitting water. More dragons surrounded his feet and water poured out from their mouths into a fountain.
Dad showed me what to do. I held the metal scoop under one of the dragons until my scoop was filled with water. Then I poured the water over each hand to clean them. The cool water felt good.
Our next stop was a big metal bowl with smoke coming from it.
“This is a jokoro, or an incense burner,” Mom explained. “It is thought that the smoke from the burning incense sticks cleanses the body.”
We used our hands to waft smoke toward us. Who knew getting clean could be so fun?
We climbed the steps to the temple, where we saw flowers and gold statues. Once we were done exploring, we stopped at a stand selling things near the temple. Sophie’s eyes got bright. She loved shopping.
“What are these?” Sophie asked Mom.
I guessed she didn’t know everything after all. That made me feel a little better.
“Oh! These are omamori,” Mom said. “They are good-luck charms.”
“Cool!” There were many charms, each hanging from a cord. They were flat silk pouches in different colors with Japanese writing on them. I would get one and hang it on my backpack!
“Each one is a charm for something specific,” Dad explained. “This one is for happiness, and this one is for good health. There are ones for love, money, and even for homework or tests.”
Mom picked up two.
“What are those for?” I asked.
“Safe driving. I will hang one in each of our cars.”
“Are you getting one?” I asked Sophie.
She nodded as she looked over her choices. “I’m going to get the one for success. Maybe it will help me in school.”
I didn’t think she needed it. Sophie was very smart and always did her homework and got great grades. But she was starting middle school in the fall, so maybe she was nervous.
“Can I get one for good luck?” I asked. That seemed like a wowee-zowee idea.
“Of course,” Dad said.
I also got charms for each of my friends at home: Linnie, Daisy, Tommy, Maggie, and Mrs. Reese. Everyone could use a bit of luck.
I tucked my omamori in my backpack next to Fred Just Fred.
I was excited to see Obaachan and explore a lot of new places. But most of all I wanted to be friends with Sophie. I hoped my omamori would give me good luck.
Jasmine’s Journal
Dear Linnie,
I wish you could really be here, even though it’s fun to talk to you in this journal. Sophie is either bossy (telling me everything she knows about things I don’t know) or grouchy (even crabbier than usual). It would be much more fun if Sophie and I were friends.
Tomorrow we are going to Tokyo Tower. It is super-tall and I am excited to see all of Tokyo from high up in the sky, like maybe if I were a flying flamingo.
Finally my adventure will start!