35mm, f/2.8, 1/160 sec, ISO 400
Religions fascinate me. They haven’t always, but lately, I’ve become enthralled with the particulars of religions, especially the small ritual motions, ranging from the big, like Jewish Bar/t Mitzvahs and Islamic pilgrimages to Mecca, to the small, like Buddhist Mudras and Catholic Communion.
During our short visit to Sensō-ji, I had the privilege to examine- and take part in- some of the cleansing rituals observed by the Shō-Kannon Buddhists who practice there. If I understand what I saw correctly, the rituals are two part: the first is exoteric in nature, a physical, exterior cleansing with the water that flows from the Dragon Pits (as I called them in my mind) and the second is more esoteric, an internal cleansing using the smoke from the incense pits that line the path between the Hōzōmon Gate and the main temple. In all honesty, I spent so much time observing the purification rituals that I didn’t get to spend more than just a couple minutes inside the temple itself- just another reason why I’ll have to revisit Tokyo (and see the rest of the country) at some point in the (hopefully not-too-distant) future.