As I may have mentioned before, I collected something called "御朱印" (goshuin, shrine signatures). I first heard about this sort of idea in the book "Cool Japan Guide" by Abby Denson. The book definitely mentioned collecting stamps from train stations, but I forget if it explicitly mentioned shrine signatures. My first time truly seeing them was when a friend of mine got a goshuin-cho, or shrine signature book, while on a field trip during my study abroad in Akita. The concept is interesting and unique, calligraphy and stamps specific to the shrine in a special book. Previously I got a key chain from every place I visited, but you can only get so many key chains and they do break eventually, so the idea of having a book seemed promising. Signatures usually cost 300-700￥ and you can fill a whole book without taking up any more space than the book itself, which makes it a great souvenir to get while traveling. During my study abroads in Japan I was taken to a lot of shrines and temples. Not entirely sure why people showed us so many, but they are truly quite beautiful and I still visit lots of them. Ducking into a small local shrine is one of my favorite things to do in big cities. A little piece of nature and quiet in the middle of a bustling city.
I had a goshuin-cho I purchased back in Senshuu Park in Akita City in 2018, but in my panic packing before my flight I left it on my desk back home. This was pretty sad to me, as all those memories of travel are still in there, but now that I actually live in Japan I'm filling my new book quite quickly and will probably have to get new book in the next couple months (depending how much traveling I do). Also my new book is absolutely gorgeous, just look at it.
I purchased this shrine signature book at Yahiko Shrine in Niigata Prefecture. Definitely made me feel a lot better about leaving my original back in America. This is probably the most beautiful shrine signature book I have ever seen. These books don't have a back binding and are sort of folded accordion style in the middle, so you have to be careful when opening them so they don't flop around or fall open. Not entirely sure why they are designed like this but they are.
Now, onto the main event: the signatures I've collected so far! Each one has the date (in Japanese years) along one side, the name of the shrine (or not a shrine!) in the middle, and various stamps around the sides or in the center. The stamps often have old style Japanese characters, which is pretty cool. According to my Introduction to Asian Art professor back in freshman year of college, those who can't read the characters can actually appreciate the artfulness of the writing more. So keeping that in mind, I hope you can enjoy my shrine signatures!
1. Yahiko Shrine in Yahiko, Niigata Prefecture
The first signature of the book. The stamp in the middle is the name of the shrine too but in the old stamp font. Can you spot the same kanjis? There is a big mountain you can climb right next to the shrine with another small shrine at the top. I climbed it in my first week out of quarantine so it was quite a challenging hike.
2. Meiji Jingu in Yoyogi Park, Tokyo City
Wandered through Yoyogi Park early in the morning after taking a night bus to Tokyo. This is one of the most famous shrines, but since it was so early I got a pretty chill walk around the shrine and surrounding park.
3. Hakodate Hachiman-gu and Tsuruwakainari Shrine in Hakodate, Hokkaido Prefecture
Hokkaido has a lot of foxes, so had to get the one with the foxes on it. Apparently the girl doing it wrote the wrong one at first, but I was happy to get both of these for only 600￥. The shrine had two shrines on the grounds, hence why the shrine names are different on the different pages.
4. Umihachimangu in Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture
A delicately written shrine signature from Fukuoka. Originally was going to the famous shrine there, but due to New Years traffic we couldn't go. This was a cool shrine too and it had a playground! As one of my friends likes to call them, a "play and pray"
5. Yudonosan Ryusuiji Dainichibo in Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture
This is actually from a temple, not a shrine, but they offered signatures so I wanted one. The woman working there was apparently very intense in her shrine signature writing as she took off her mask to do this and gave these strong brushstrokes, unlike what you see in the other signatures I have. Apparently this is very masculine style, but it was done by a kind grandma.
Oh, and I should also probably mention that this temple had a mummy in it. That was interesting.
6. Zenpoji Temple in Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture
I love the angular stamp in the center of this signature. It is quite unique. When waiting for this to be written, one of the local monks came to talk to me and asked if I was a student. He was very excited when I said I'm actually an English teacher. He was a young monk and very kind. Hopefully when my Japanese is better I can go back and talk to him more!
7. Hakusan Shrine in Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture
Beautiful shrine area with a playground, multiple shrines, natural areas, and a lot of cherry blossoms! The area also has an English guide to omamori, good luck charms from the shrine, which is very helpful for someone like me who is still working on their kanji. I got a safe driving one!
8. Shonai Shrine in Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture
I don't know if this shows well in the picture, but I got the special cherry blossom season signature which comes with a two toned sparkly stamp. It's so beautiful. Probably my favorite signature right now.
9. Shibata Castle in Shibata, Niigata Prefecture
These aren't truly shrine signatures as they are printed, but they are special cherry blossom season goshuin from Shibata Castle. Having a little extra color is fun, even though I had to glue them in. The worker at the shop asked me where I'm from and was excited about my shrine signature collecting. One of the volunteers also gave me an umbrella because it was raining. Happy to support this castle.
And that's my collection so far!I carry my book whenever I go on a trip so hopefully I can get more soon!
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