 Last additions - Teppozu Inari Shrine Kanchu Suiyoku 鉄砲洲稲荷神社 寒中水浴 |
|
|
The priest is all smiles after the bath.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The man is still hugging his ice.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
To this man, ice water is a healthy thing. I know I would never do this.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The man on the lower right kept hugging this big block of ice.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
This shrine priest does not appear in recent photos of this ritual, so he might have passed away. This festival won't be the same without him.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
This was the second time I saw this, and each time there was one woman.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The shrine priest had charisma and spunk.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
These photos were taken in the 1997.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The shrine priest was then the first to enter the bath. Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Cold-water ablutions is not unusual in ascetic Buddhism, but to see it at a Shinto shrine is unusual.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The shrine priest is Nakagawa Masamitsu, still looking youthful in his 80s. This freezing water bath event started at a health club in Ichikawa, Chiba in 1956. But 4 years later, it could not be held any longer so it moved here.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
For about 5-10 min. they all sat in the frigid water and chanted while praying. They prayed for good health for themselves and their families.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
In 2007, the water tub was replaced with a much larger pool able to fit 60 people. But I like this smaller tub.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Without flinching, he took a dip. This is quite tame compared to what he does every Feb: Swim in the icy Sea of Okhotsk off Abashiri, Hokkaido.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The rest of the people also jump in the tub.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Then they ran around the shrine.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Jun 01, 2009
|
|
There were no musicians on stage like they have now. It was a pretty quiet ritual, and the crowd was quite small.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
First the shrine priest came out.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The men (and one woman) about to take a dip standby in this shrine meeting hall.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Everyone followed the priest's lead.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
First they give a few prayers led by the shrine priest.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Then the shrine priest, who was in his 80s, started some warm-up exercises.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
The shrine priest was followed by some 15 or so people ready for their freezin-cold water ablution bath.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
Teppozu Inari Shrine, near Hatchobori Station on the Hibiya subway line.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
In front of the shrine were two large tubs of freezing-cold water with a few large blocks of ice await. The Kanchu Suiyoku (Mid-winter Cold Water Bath) is held on the second Sunday of Jan.Jun 01, 2009
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
