Tori-no-Ichi

Tori-no-Ichi at Ohtori Shrine near Sugamo has a cosy, neighbourhood mood that feels different from the big Asakusa version. The lanterns glow softly along the narrow approach, and the air smells of grilled squid, sweet amazake and those smoky little charcoal stoves the food vendors love. You tend to follow the crowd without really knowing where you are going, which is half the fun. Everyone shuffles forward in a polite tide, all ages from tiny kids clutching balloon animals to elderly neighbours who probably attend every year as faithfully as they sort the recycling.

The kumade stalls are the true stars. They are packed so tightly with lucky charms that the rakes look ready to burst into song. A kumade is a decorative bamboo rake used as a lucky charm during Tori-no-Ichi. The idea is simple and cheerful. Since a rake gathers things in, the kumade symbolically gathers good fortune, business success and general prosperity for the coming year.

Traditionally it starts as a plain bamboo rake, but festival craftsmen completely transform it. They load it with tiny masks of deities, gold coins, bales of rice, cranes, turtles and even little red-faced figures that look like they are plotting something mischievous. The result is a riot of colour that looks like a treasure hoard stuck to a gardening tool.

At the stalls you often see sizes ranging from something small enough to tuck into your bag to huge creations that need two people to carry. When someone buys one, the sellers perform a short hand-clap chant called tejime to send the luck off properly. It is part sales ritual, part mini party.