Omikuji

Omikuji (御御籤, 御神籤, or おみくじ) are random fortunes written on strips of paper at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan. Literally “sacred lottery”, these are usually received by making a small offering (generally a five-yen coin as it is considered good luck) and randomly choosing one from a box, hoping for the resulting fortune to be good.
The omikuji predicts the person’s chances of his or her hopes coming true, of finding a good match, or generally matters of health, fortune, life, etc. When the prediction is bad, it is a custom to fold up the strip of paper and attach it to a pine tree or a wall of metal wires alongside other bad fortunes in the temple or shrine grounds. In the event of the fortune being good, the bearer has the option of tying it for the fortune to have a greater effect or can keep it for luck. – wikipedia

Photo taken at the Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gū shinto shrine, in Kamakura.

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  • http://twitter.com/Miettechan Miette-chan

    Did you get one? I would like to get one and try the whole sticking it on a tree thing if I got a bad luck one.

  • http://www.mukyaa.com lu-k

    No did not get one here. The place looked really too touristy, with even omikuji translated in English. Was looking for something more typical ^^
    Though I like how technology is mixed with traditions and spiritual, like the omikuji vending machines.