Joya no Kane for the New Year

Joya no Kane, the ringing of the temple bell 108 times to cast out the 108 earthly desires for the New Year, will mostly not be available for visitors again this year. Like last year, the only temple in Suginami offering the experience is Myohoji Temple in south Koenji. On New Year’s Eve the temple will close its gates at 4:00pm and reopen at 11:30pm, when 100 tickets will be available on a first-come-first-serve basis. The ringing of Myohoji’s large cast iron bell will be possible for those 100 people (1 ring each, while temple monks will assumedly be ringing off the remaining 8 rings) from midnight until 1:00am, the first hour of 2022.

The travel situation has still not improved, but we wish everyone a happy New Year. Here’s hoping Japan can open its doors to visitors in 2022.