Does the New Year in Kyoto start with ○○?

 

It’s amazing how quickly time flies—it never fails to surprise me.

New Year's is a time when cultural and traditional events take place all over Japan to mark the start of a new year.

At times like that, I find myself wondering, “What’s New Year’s like in Kyoto?”

 

The city of Kyoto is home to New Year’s-specific events and traditional culture that many people who aren’t from the area are “unfamiliar with.”

 

So, in this article, we’d like to introduce some traditional events and New Year’s foods that you should know about and try if you’re spending the New Year in Kyoto.

 

■Ancient Traditional Events Held During the New Year in Kyoto

There are many time-honored traditional events during the New Year in Kyoto.

So, in this section, we’ll introduce some traditional events.

If anything catches your eye, be sure to check it out.

○ New Year's Visit to Yasaka Shrine

During the New Year's shrine visits in Kyoto, large crowds flock to various shrines.

Hatsumode is, essentially, the first visit to a shrine in the new year to pray for health and peace throughout the year.

Among them is Yasaka Shrine, located in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, which is said to offer blessings for warding off misfortune, finding a partner, and beauty.

Yasaka Shrine was founded in 656 and is affectionately known today as “Gion-san.”

This is the head shrine of all the Gion shrines across the country, and since it is open to visitors 24 hours a day, many people come here on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

You can also see the “Gion Weeping Cherry Blossoms” in the spring, so be sure to visit no matter the season.

Date and Time: January 1

Location: Yasaka Shrine

Address: 625 Gion-cho Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City

○ New Year's Visit to Fushimi Inari Taisha

Fushimi Inari Taisha is the head shrine of “Oinari-san,” which has continued to attract the devotion of the people for 1,300 years.

Founded around 708, its main attraction is the thousand torii gates.

The New Year's visit to Fushimi Inari Taisha is also very popular.

On New Year's Day, many people visit shrines for their first shrine visit of the year, and stores and other places are bustling with activity.

Date and Time: January 1

Location: Fushimi Inari Taisha

Address: 68 Fukakusa Yabunouchi-cho, Fushimi Ward, Kyoto City

○ New Year's Visit to Heian Jingu Shrine

It was founded in 1895 as a community shrine to commemorate the 1,100th anniversary of the relocation of the capital to Heian-kyō.

The grounds of Heian Jingu Shrine are illuminated starting on New Year's Eve.

The vast gardens will be so crowded with people that you’ll forget the chill in the air, and the entire space will be enveloped in a magical atmosphere.

There will also be amazake served in the middle of the night.

Date and Time: January 1

Location: Heian Jingu Shrine

Address: 97 Okazaki Nishi-Tenno-cho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City

○ New Year's Visit to Ishimizu Hachiman Shrine

Iwashimizu Hachiman Shrine is one of Japan’s Three Great Hachiman Shrines and has been known as a famous cherry blossom viewing spot since the Heian period.

This shrine was established through the transfer of a deity from Usa Jingu, the head shrine of the Hachiman faith. Its main hall was designated a National Treasure in 2016, so you’ll be able to see its historic architecture.

Many people also come to pay their first shrine visit of the year on New Year's Day.

Date and Time: January 1

Location: Ishimizu Hachiman Shrine

Address: 30 Yawata-Takabō, Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ Tenma-gaki

At Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, the Hitsu-hajime Festival is held on January 2.

In memory of Lord Sugawara no Michizane—the deity enshrined here, who is also known as a calligrapher—the children begin their calligraphy practice after offering prayers for improvement in their skills.

Dates: January 2–4

Location: Kitano Tenmangu Shrine

Address: Bakuro-cho, Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto City

○ Karuta Kickoff Ceremony

The Karuta Opening Ceremony is held every year on January 3.

After the karuta cards are offered at the shrine altar, the voices of those reciting the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu echo throughout the shrine grounds, and a karuta match takes place between the “Karuta Princesses” and young attendants dressed in junihitoe.

The Karuta Princesses will compete in Hyakunin Isshu matches in pairs.

The sight of them racing to catch their prey is truly spectacular.

Date and Time: January 3

Location: Yasaka Shrine

Address: 625 Gion-cho Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ The First Kemari Game of the Year

The first kemari match of the year is held every year on January 4.

"Kemari" was introduced from China during the Nara period.

A group of 6 to 8 people forms a troupe, dressed in the costumes of Heian-period court officials, and performs while chanting “Ari, Ya, O.”

This game played by Heian-period nobles is said to be the origin of soccer, and it is famous as a traditional event that preserves this game for the modern day.

Date and Time: January 4

Location: Shimogamo Shrine

Address:59 Shimogamo-Izumigawa-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto

○ Seven-Herb Rice Porridge, Hakuba Sōran Shinto Ritual

"Kamigamo Shrine," located in Kyoto's Kita Ward, is one of the oldest shrines in Kyoto.

Its official name is Kamo-Wakuraiji Shrine, and the deity enshrined there is Kamo-Wakuraiji-no-Okami.

The entire temple grounds are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the designation “Cultural Properties of the Ancient Capital of Kyoto,” and the National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties on the premises are also highlights.

At Kamigamo Shrine, events such as the Seven Herbs Porridge ceremony and the White Horse Procession are held on January 7.

Nanakusa-gayu is a type of rice porridge made with water dropwort, shepherd’s purse, Japanese mugwort, chickweed, chickweed-leaved plantain, radish, and white radish; it is cooked early in the morning and offered at the household altar.

And based on the legend that seeing a white horse at the start of the year wards off evil spirits, the sacred horse will walk through the shrine grounds starting around noon.

Date and Time: January 7

Location: Kamigamo Shrine

Address: 339 Kamigamo Motoyama, Kita Ward, Kyoto City

○ Ebisu Boat Cruise

The "Ebisu Boat Procession" at Gion Ebisu is a traditional event held at the Kitamuki Ebisu Shrine, part of Yasaka Shrine.

A tradition dating back to the Heian period continues to this day: every year on January 9, a float carrying a statue of Ebisu and an “Ebisu boat” carrying the Seven Lucky Gods set out from the foot of the stone steps at Yasaka Shrine and parade down Shijo Street.

The sound of taiko drums and the lively cheers will bring you good luck and leave you feeling refreshed.

Date and Time: January 9

Location: Yasaka Shrine

Address: 625 Gion-cho Kitagawa, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ Through-Arrow

The "Toshiya" archery ceremony held at Sanjūsangen-dō Temple during the New Year.

Officially known as the Kyoto Sanjūsangendō National Archery Tournament, it attracts skilled black-belt archers and young adults who have recently come of age from all over the country to compete. It is said that during the Edo period, participants competed to see how many targets they could hit in a single day and night.

The new adults perform an archery competition dressed in their formal attire, which is truly beautiful, and since the arrows are shot 120 meters away, it’s a truly spectacular sight.

Date and Time: The Sunday closest to January 15

Location: Sanjūsangendō

Address: 657 Sanjūsangendō-mae-chō, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ New Year's Greeting Tour by Geisha and Maiko

In Miyagawa-cho, one of Kyoto’s geisha districts, geiko and maiko will go around offering New Year’s greetings on January 5.

We make it a point to greet those who have been so kind to us—such as tea shop owners and other relevant parties—with the words, “Happy New Year! We look forward to your continued support this year as well.”

We will make the rounds to pay our respects dressed in the formal attire of geiko and maiko—a black kimono with a family crest, adorned with a hairpin featuring a rice ear motif.

Date and Time: January 5

Location: Miyagawa-cho, the entertainment district

Address: Miyagawa-cho, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

○Obu-cha

In Kyoto, there has long been a tradition of drinking tea made with small plum blossoms and knotted kelp from January 1 to January 3 to pray for good health and the absence of illness throughout the year.

Around 951, during the late Heian period, an epidemic was raging in Kyoto.

This tradition has been passed down to the present day, based on a temple legend that when the founding monk, Kūya, gave medicinal tea to a sick person, the person was cured.

Dates: January 1–3

Location: Rokuharamitsu-ji Temple

Address: 81-1 Rokuro-cho, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ Tōka Ebisu: Hōei Basket

Emisu Shrine in Kyoto’s Higashiyama Ward, home to the god of prosperous business.

Ebisu is a Japanese god revered for bringing prosperity to businesses and families.

During the Tenka Ebisu Grand Festival held here, businesspeople from all over Kyoto come to pray for a prosperous year.

There are many events, including the mochi-pounding ritual, the Yutate Kagura ritual, the offering of a “good fortune tuna,” and the “Hōei-kago” ceremony—where rakes and other items are distributed amid shouts of “Hōei-kago, hoi!” while the baskets are decorated with bamboo, plum blossoms, and red and white ribbons.

Date and Time: January 8–9

Location: Emisu Shrine

Address: 125 Komatsu-cho, Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, Emisu Shrine

○ Giant Goshinya (Sacred Arrow)

At Ishimizu Hachiman Shrine in Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture, you can see the "Jumbo Sacred Arrow" displayed to welcome visitors for the first shrine visit of the New Year.

Located in front of the main hall's gate, the 8-meter-long sacred arrow made of green bamboo is a truly spectacular sight.

Dates: Late December through around February

Location: Ishimizu Hachiman Shrine

Address: 30 Yawata-Takabō, Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture

○ Tokyo's Seven Lucky Gods Pilgrimage

The “Tokyo Seven Lucky Gods Pilgrimage,” which takes you to Rokuharamitsu-ji Temple, Ebisu Shrine, Manpuku-ji Temple, Myoen-ji Temple, To-ji Temple, Akayama Zen-in, and Gyogan-ji Temple.

It is said that visiting seven shrines and temples over the course of one month starting on New Year's Day will bring you good fortune.

It is possible to complete the tour in a single day, but given the distance and the large crowds, you should expect a tight schedule.

Dates: January 1–January 31

Locations: Rokuharamitsu-ji Temple, Ebisu Shrine, Manpuku-ji Temple, Myoen-ji Temple, To-ji Temple, Akayama Zen-in, Gyogan-ji Temple

○ Sagichō

"Sanjū-in," a temple of the Tendai sect located in Ōhara, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City.

On January 15, we will hold a ritual here to burn New Year’s decorations and calligraphy pieces as an offering to pray for good health and the absence of illness.

This fire festival held during Little New Year is called “Sagichō.”

Date and Time: January 15

Location: Sanzen-in

Address: 540 Ohara Raigoin-cho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City

○ Musha Ritual

Every year, the Takumi-yumi ritual is held at Kamigamo Shrine.

This is a ceremony in which the chief priest and other priests of Kamigamo Shrine shoot arrows at a target approximately 1.8 meters in diameter with the word “oni” (demon) written on the back to purify the shrine of evil spirits throughout the year.

Date and Time: January 16

Location: Kamigamo Shrine

Address: 339 Kamigamo Motoyama, Kita Ward, Kyoto City

■There are many foods unique to Kyoto during the New Year's season

During the New Year in Kyoto, there are several foods that are essential to the city’s unique New Year’s celebrations.

So, here are a few examples of typical foods.

○ White Miso Zoni

Ozoni is a must-have for New Year's, isn't it?

A distinctive feature of Kyoto-style ozoni is that it is made with white miso.

This is a type of ozoni made with white miso and white ingredients such as round mochi, baby potatoes, potato tops, and daikon radish.

○ Daifuku Tea

Daifuku tea is drunk to ward off the evil spirits of the past year and celebrate the New Year.

Pour tea over pickled plums and kelp, and drink it before eating ozoni.

○ Stick Cod (Bōdara)

Dried cod sticks are an essential part of the Osechi New Year's feast.

Slow-simmered cod sticks are a traditional Kyoto delicacy.

○ Seven-Herb Rice Porridge

Seven-Herb Rice Porridge, eaten to pray for good health and freedom from illness.

We also offer red bean porridge with red beans and mochi.

○ Petal Mochi

These are traditional New Year's sweets eaten in Kyoto.

I'll go into more detail later.

○ Obukucha (a type of tea served before ozoni)

On New Year's Day, there is also a tradition of drinking a tea called "Daifuku-cha" before eating ozoni.

This tradition is said to have originated during an epidemic in the Heian period, when the monk Kūya served tea containing pickled plums to the sick.

Nowadays, Daifuku-cha is drunk as a New Year’s tea to pray for a year of good health and peace, and it has become customary to pour the tea over pickled plums and kelp.

It is known for being sold and served at long-established tea shops such as Ippodo Tea Shop (Teramachi-Nijo), Ryuouen Tea Shop (Gosho-Nishi), Nakamura Tokichi Main Store, and Fukuju-en starting around December each year, as well as at the Rokuharamitsu-ji Temple during the first three days of January; recently, it has also become popular among tourists and international visitors.

What Is Kyoto-Style Ozoni?

Photo: KYOTREAT Editorial Department

Have you ever tried ozoni in Kyoto? Kyoto-style ozoni is made with white miso and contains round mochi. The standard ingredients are taro and daikon radish; the round mochi symbolizes harmony and longevity, while the taro represents the prosperity of descendants and success in life. Daikon radish symbolizes harmony when cut into rounds and longevity when cut into tortoise-shell shapes. Since ozoni is offered to the New Year deity, kombu is generally used as the sole source of broth to avoid any fishy odor, and bonito flakes are sprinkled on top just before eating.

Generally, most miso has a salt content of around 10 to 12 percent, but the salt content of Kyoto’s white miso—known as Saikyo miso—is approximately 5 to 7 percent. Among the higher-end varieties, some contain a larger amount of koji and have an extremely mild flavor with a salt content of 4 percent or less. We use plenty of this sweet miso until the soup becomes thick and rich. It looks just like a potage! People from other prefectures who try this ozoni for the first time invariably say, “It’s sweet, isn’t it?” with a big smile.

And Kyoto residents each have their own favorite type of Saikyo miso. You might think, “Isn’t white miso pretty much the same everywhere?” but the flavor varies greatly depending on factors such as the amount and type of koji, the aging period, and the salt content. Some of the best-known brands include Yamari Shoten, Ishino Miso, Honda Miso, and Kantōya. Among these, Yamari’s miso is the official supplier to renowned ryōtei restaurants, famous wagashi shops, and the three major schools of the tea ceremony. Made exclusively from koji crafted from carefully selected rice, soybeans, and salt, it boasts a refined and deep flavor.

Photo: KYOTREAT Editorial Department

Since you can find it at department stores, supermarkets, and places like Nishiki Market, it’s fun to try comparing different brands of Saikyo miso to find the flavor you like best. With so many white miso recipes available online, you might even find yourself expanding your culinary horizons.

And here’s something I’d like to share with anyone traveling to Kyoto! You can enjoy this white miso zoni at the following restaurants!

・Shiruko (100 Manmachi, Nishikiyamachi, Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, just north of Shijo)

・Kimi-ya (37-1 Jodoji Kaminamida-cho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City)

・Ichijō-ji Nakaya (5 Ichijō-ji Hanano-ki-chō, Sakyō-ku, Kyoto City)

・Toraya Saryo Ichijo Branch (Ichijo-dori, Karasuma Nishi-iru, Kamigyo Ward, Kyoto City)

The place I’d especially like to recommend is “Shiruko.”

Photo: KYOTREAT Editorial Department

This is a restaurant specializing in miso soup. It’s located on the site of the former residence of Shuntaro Kotaka—the man whose actions sparked the Ikedaya Incident, in which the Shinsengumi attacked loyalist activists—making it a location that fans of the Bakumatsu era will find irresistible! The interior also has a distinct Kyoto feel.

You can enjoy delicious miso soup all year round, but from December through February, they also serve ozoni—a truly irresistible dish where the rich, hearty broth harmonizes perfectly with the creamy, full-bodied white miso.

○ Sweet Potato Stick (Imobō)

A traditional Kyoto dish known only to those in the know is imobō.

Imobō is a dish that has been enjoyed in Kyoto for a long time and is also a popular part of the Osechi ryori holiday meal.

To begin with, "imo-bō" is a dish made by simmering ebi-imo and dried cod together.

Ebi-imo is one of the Kyoto vegetables, and its origins are said to date back to the mid-Edo period, when sweet potatoes from Kyushu were brought back to Kyoto.

Since it was a very expensive food back then, it is said that people ate it on special occasions, such as New Year's.

This dish is characterized by simmering thickly chamfered taro root with tender, rehydrated cod sticks over a long period of time.

What exactly is "hanabira mochi"?

And in Kyoto, there are traditional Japanese sweets that are synonymous with the New Year.

When it comes to traditional Japanese sweets in Kyoto, Demachi Futaba’s “Mame Mochi” has become nationally famous in recent years. Its popularity has continued to soar, and this year, we even saw lines stretching all the way to the foot of Aoi Bridge—famous for the Aoi Festival! “Ajari Mochi” is also a popular souvenir, isn’t it?

But when it comes to New Year's, nothing beats hanabira mochi.

To begin with, hanabira-mochi is famous as a traditional Japanese confection that is an essential part of New Year's celebrations in Kyoto (primarily events such as the Hatsugama).

This Japanese confection consists of soft mochi dough wrapped around a white miso filling and sweetly simmered burdock root; it is said to be a symbol of longevity originating from the “tooth-hardening ceremony” of the Heian period. 

This confection is based on the concept of combining the diamond-shaped and round mochi traditionally eaten during the New Year in the Edo period with a type of zoni soup served without broth, so it contains miso and burdock root and is wrapped in mochi.

They will be available at many long-established Japanese confectionery shops in Kyoto from late December through mid-January.

Photo: KYOTREAT Editorial Department—Michiyoshi Kawabata’s “Mihashi-ba”

We begin accepting phone reservations on December 1st every year, and since they fill up in the blink of an eye, they’re probably already hard to come by this year—but the rich, white miso filling and its melt-in-your-mouth texture offer a flavor you won’t find in any other hanabira mochi. Be sure to give them a try next year or later.

Since the hanabira mochi from other Japanese confectionery shops also vary considerably in every possible aspect—from shape and the type of mochi used to the brand of white miso, the consistency of the red bean paste, and the number of burdock root pieces—I enjoy discovering these differences every year.

Photo: KYOTREAT Editorial Department Top: Chokudo; Left: Tsuruya Tsuruju-an; Right: Kameya Yoshinaga

○ Red Bean Porridge to Pray for Good Health and Freedom from Illness

On January 15 (or between the 14th and 16th), people sometimes celebrate “Little New Year,” a New Year’s tradition.

During Little New Year, people sometimes eat a dish called red bean porridge.

Red bean porridge is made with soft, cooked red beans and mochi.

This custom originates from a Chinese tradition in which red foods, such as adzuki beans, were believed to ward off evil spirits; it came to be eaten both as a way to pray for good health and to give the stomach and intestines a rest after the heavy New Year’s feasts.

Red bean porridge is such a traditional food that it is even mentioned in *The Pillow Book* and *The Tosa Diary*. 

Although it has now become well-known throughout the country, it has become a traditional dish eaten as “Azuno-oka-san,” particularly in the Kansai region, starting with Kyoto.

Once the New Year celebrations are over, you can enjoy red bean porridge at events like the “Celebrating Early Spring with Red Bean Porridge” at Myōshin-ji’s Tōrin-in Temple and the “Porridge Festival” at Shimogamo Shrine.

While there are many dishes made with white miso—such as Saikyo-zuke, aburi-mochi, and miso-matsukaze—New Year’s is the time of year when people enjoy white miso the most. If you’re spending New Year’s in Kyoto, why not try ozoni and hanabira-mochi and celebrate the Kyoto New Year with all five senses?