二拝二拍手一拝

A tradition of the New Year in Japan is to visit the 神社 (じんじゃ) - Shinto Shrine

The 神社 is a beautiful spiritual place often designated with a 鳥居⛩(とりい) - Shrine Gate, and two statues of either 狛犬 (こまいぬ) - lions or 狐 (キツネ) - foxes on each side, one with the mouth open representing the "a", the first letter of the Sanskrit alphabet, and the other with the mouth closed representing the "un", the last letter of the Sanskrit alphabet that represents the beginning and end of all things known as the "aum".

At the 神社, there is a specific way to pray to the deities or spirits of the world that is taught to us in this sign:

二 (に) - Two

拝 (ハイ) - Worship, Pray, Bow

拍手 (はくしゅ) - Clapping hands

一 (いち) - One

Translation: Two bows, Two hand claps, One bow

神前 (しんぜん) - Before God, Before an alter

に - Location particle

進ん(すす) - Proceed

 - だら - Conditional verb conjugation for Before/After, When or If

姿勢(しせい) - Posture, pose, stance, attitude, approach

を - direct object particle (thing acted upon)

正し(ただ) - Correct, straighten (posture), adjust

二拝二拍手一拝

の - Possessive particle marker

作法(さほう) - Manners, etiquette, way of making

で - Particle for by, with; で can also be for location or cause, purpose

お参りします(おまいり) - Visit (a shrine, grave), pray, worship

Translation: Straighten yourself when you proceed before the alter, pray on your visit with the etiquette of two bows, two hand claps, and one bow.

Let's break down each step individually,

1:

まず - First, to start

二回(にかい) - 2 times

深く(ふか) - Deep, strong, intense, profound

頭(あたま)

を

下げます(さ) - Lower, bring down, bend

その - That

深さ

は(wa) - Topic

腰(こし) - Hips, waist

九十(きゅうじゅう) - Ninety, 90

度(ど) - Degrees

に - Target to which motion progresses

曲げる(まげる) - Bend, curve, lean, slant

程度(ていど) - Degree, amount, approximately

が - Subject (doer or undergoes of action, state)

美しい(うつく) - Beautiful

と - Quotation marker before verb 言う or いわれています

いわれています - It is said

Translation: First, start with 2 deep head bends. The deep motion is a 90 degree bend of your waist. That is said to be the most beautiful pose.

2:

二拝した

あと - After

胸(むね) - Chest, breast, heart

の

前(まえ) - In front

で

両手(りょうて) - Both hands

を

合わせ(あ) - Matching

右手(みぎて) - Right hand

を

少し(すこ) - A litte

下(した) - Down

に

ずらして - Shift, slide (something away from something else), move (something out of the way)

二回手

を

打ちます(う) - Strike, hit, knock

二拍手

のあと - After

両手

の

指先(ゆびさき) - Finger, fingertip, toe, toe tip

揃えて(そろ) - Align, match, collect

祈り(いのり) - 

を

こめます - To put into (emotion, effort)

Translation: After two bows, put both hands matching in front of your chest. Shift your right hand down a little and clap two times. After two hand claps, align your fingers on both hands and give a heart felt prayer.

3:

最後(さいご) - Last

に

もう - Another

一回

深く

頭

を

下げます

Translation: Last, another one deep head bend.

Many 神社 or 寺 temples will also have a wooden box in front of the shrine. This is an offering box that you toss a coin into as a gift. Typically, you will toss the money in and then do the 二拝に拍手一拝.

Another tradition is purifying yourself at the 手水舎(ちょうずや). This is a water basin or tub, typically wooden or concrete, where you dip a wooden ladle to draw water to cleanse or purify your hands and mouth, NOT by putting it to your lips as it is used by thousands of people. You pour the water at an angle over your mouth so you do not pour water on your clothes and do not let the water fall back into the 手水舎. 

There is a delicate technique of pouring the water over your 左手(ひだりて) - Left Hand; then angling the ladle to pour over your 右手 without using your 左手 as it has just been purified when 右利き(みぎきき) - Right-handed (or opposite if you are 左利き (ひだりきき) - Left-handed). 

Many people do not know this technique or find it difficult to not get their clothes wet so they may just switch hands or assist their friends, family or partner with the purification. 

If you are living in Japan or live near a 神社 in your town, now you know how to pray to the shrine in authentic Shinto style.

And coming up, the New Year is the most popular time to visit the 神社 and make your New Year's wish, much like a New Year's resolution in the west.

Please leave a comment if you would like to let us know your New Year's wish. Also, if you enjoy Death By Kanji, please consider buying me a coffee using the link in the sidebar. It would be appreciated.

じゃあ、明けましておめでとうございます！

ジョシュア

最後尾

This is a common word you will see around Japan, especially if you are waiting to buy concert tickets or to get a seat at a restaurant.

最後尾 (さいこうび) - End of the line

Some lines in Japan can get very long, and to maintain a civil process of no cuts, a person working the event will stand at the end of the line with this sign. This makes sure that everyone knows - this is the end, stand here.

Sometimes they may also have a wait time estimate, but we all know those are bullshit. Save yourself and your workers a headache and forget the estimate. Just say, 最後尾.

And be careful of the hobbyist. This is a true story, an adult student at an English School I worked at when I worked in Japan told us once, their hobby was standing in lines. If they saw a line, they would stand in it and see where it would lead. Often times, it was to the opening of a restaurant or food stand. You need a lot of time to have this hobby.

When I was there, they also opened a Krispy Kreme donuts. The line was very long. It went around the corner and even cut across the street. They needed three workers to manage the line. One at the end of the line on one side of the street, one at the beginning of the line on the other side of the street and one at the end of the entire line on that side of the street as well.

I hope it was worth it.

終です。

ジョシュア

福

This is the 招き猫 (まねきねこ) - Beckoning Cat. 

福 (ふく) - Blessing, Fortune, Good Will, Luck

These 招き猫 are often sold as good luck charms and are believed to bring good fortune to the owner.

The pose is a the 猫 on its hind legs holding a coin with the 漢字 福 written on it, while the other paw gestures for the viewer to come near.

In Japan, to ask for someone to come closer, they hold their hand straight out or up with the palm facing down and curl their fingers back.

This is different than the American way of holding the palm up and moving the hand, or arm, back and forth as if they were grabbing them and pulling them closer.

This is a small cultural difference in gaining someone's attention, although 日本人 say, "来て、来て" (きて), while Americans say, "Come here" which translates the same.

皆さんに福が欲しいです。

じゃまた、

ジョシュア

Bored Panda article on 50 Facts That Prove Japan Is Unlike Any Other Country

Over at Bored Panda they posted an article titled:

50 Facts That Prove Japan Is Unlike Any Other Country

Go over there and give it a read. There are some interesting things and really 50 is only 1/3rd of what makes Japan so unique compared to other countries, and their public transportation system accounts for about 2/3rds of that.

Let me know if you agree or disagree with Bored Panda or have a rebuttal of 50 Facts That Prove MY COUNTRY Is Unlike Any Other Country!

I'm always up to learn new and interesting things about places and culture.

読みました、ありがとう。

ジョシュア