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Friday, May 10, 2013

Tokyo, Japan – Sensoji Temple Fortune Telling


I have to admit, this practice intrigues me. I had read about it in my research, but didn’t get the impact until I saw it live.  It has the Pennsylvania lottery and numbers outdone because there doesn’t appear to be a financial payback required from the system that collects money.  From watching, a person pays 100 Yen (about $1 USD), and pulls a stick from a box.  Then the number written on the stick is matched to the numbers on the little drawers.  A piece of paper is removed from the drawer and on it is written the fortune.  If the person likes the fortune, the paper is kept. If it is not a good fortune, the paper is tied to a rack.  I always saw crowds around these kiosks, and some kept picking fortune after fortune.  Sometimes it takes a few tries to get it right, I guess.   Note the two women in the straw hats.  I saw them several times during the day…at the fortune telling kiosks. 



The booths are on both sides of the plaza, our left and right.  Look at the crowds.





 This box holds the numbered sticks.

 A close-up detail of the boxes with the fortunes.

UPDATE from additional research: These papers are "Omikuji".  The word stands for "fortune telling strips".  The Japanese characters (kanji) have the word "lottery" in them.  It literally means "sacred lot".   The first section has a general fortune ranging from very good to not so good.  Here are some examples:


After the general statement there is a comment on finding a new job, love, future health, business outcomes and more in greater detail.  Here are some examples:

The part highlighted in yellow is the general fortune.  Source: http://zoomingjapan.com/wiki/omikuji-fortune-telling-paper-strips/


1 comment:

Ginan said...

I like the process - select a fortune and if you don't like it, there's a way to dispose of it and try again until you get one you like and keep. It's a practice to consider in life - see what you get, then decide to keep it or not, and keep going until you get what you like!!

100% payoff because everyone has the ability to walk away happy, believing that they have good fortune ahead!

The Secret put in action!!